My name is Heather, and I’m a mom to eight kids living in Baltimore, Maryland. I’ve been navigating our childcare crisis for over two decades. It’s been exhausting, financially devastating, and hard on my kids. 

There have been times I’ve been eligible for childcare assistance, which helped me to afford the care I needed so I could work full-time, only to get kicked off the second I made one dollar too much. I’ve struggled to be both a mom and provide for my family while also chasing my career dreams, and I can’t express enough how stressful this lack of consistent, affordable care has been. 

And I’m Shelby, a childcare provider based in Othello, Washington, caring for nine children in my home. When I started providing care, business was booming and I felt like I was fulfilling a need in my community for consistent, reliable care. Now, I’m struggling to keep kids enrolled in my program because so many parents can’t qualify for assistance.

I’m watching parents have to leave the workforce because they can’t afford care. I’m deeply concerned that if more folks are impacted, I’ll have to let my assistant go or even close my doors. And I’m tired of feeling like an afterthought for our representatives, who should be investing in what truly matters: our children, who are our future.  

It shouldn’t be this hard to care for our kids. That’s why, today, on Community Change Action’s 5th Annual National Day Without Child Care, thousands of parents and providers like us are taking action to demand the universal childcare system we deserve. 

All over the country, we’re calling out of work, closing our doors, keeping our kids home, and hosting events to launch the national campaign that will win universal child care. Our current system is unsustainable, and families and providers who are already struggling to keep up with the rising costs of everything are at a breaking point. The time is now for us to win the universal childcare system we deserve– one that actually works and makes life better for families.

We’re tired of Republican politicians claiming to care about “family values” but voting against child care time and time again. Trump claims there’s no money for care, champions attacks against immigrant providers, and villainizes the industry as a whole. And he and his friends shrug their shoulders and look the other way as families and providers demand help, instead making decisions that make our lives worse. 

They want us to point the finger at each other instead of at them – they want parents to blame providers who have to raise their rates just to keep the lights on, and they want providers to blame parents who desperately need a village to help raise their kids and survive in this economy. But they’ve failed, because we’re united in bringing this fight to the national stage, knowing that the true villains are the people making life harder for families and providers, not each other. 

This wasn’t built overnight – we’ve been growing our movement to bring our childcare system into the 21st century for decades. In the last five years, Day Without Child Care participation has quadrupled as more parents, providers, and allies find themselves looking for a way to fight back against the politicians making life harder for everyday people. 

So what do we mean when we say universal?

For a provider like Shelby, it would mean I could actually save for retirement, plus have access to health insurance so I can take care of myself as well as others. And for a parent like Heather, it would mean significantly more money in my pocket at the end of the month to keep food on the table for my family and the ability to chase my dream career – all while knowing my kids are loved, educated and cared for. Universal childcare would be a massive game-changer for our families, our communities, and the economy, which loses $172 billion to our childcare crisis each year. 

The childcare system that we deliver will be built by parents and providers, for parents and providers. It’s time for policymakers to decide if they’re with us and ready to fight for the sustainability of our communities, our families, and our economy.

And we invite anyone to join us – parents, providers, or folks who simply think it shouldn’t be this hard to raise a family, give kids a great start, or earn a wage that reflects your worth. We just have one last question for you:

Are you in?