Hillary Clinton in It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton
On Families & Children:
Children are not rugged individualists
Children are not rugged individualists. They depend on the adults they know and on thousands more who make decisions every day that affect their well-being. All of us, whether we acknowledge it or not, are responsible for deciding whether our children
are raised in a nation that doesn’t just espouse family values but values families & children.I have spent much of the past 25 years working to improve the lives of children.
My work has taught me that they need more of our time, energy, and resources. But no experience brought home the lesson as vividly as becoming a mother myself.
When Chelsea Victoria Clinton lay in my arms for the first time,
I was overwhelmed by the love and responsibility I felt for her. Despite all the books I had read, all the children I had studied and advocated for, nothing had prepared me for the sheer miracle of her being.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p. 1
Sep 25, 1996
On Education:
Character education: teach empathy & self-discipline
A number of schools around the country are incorporating the teaching of empathy & self-discipline--what social theorists call “character education”--into their curricula. In New Haven CT, a social development approach is integrated into every public
school child’s daily routine. Children learn techniques for developing & enhancing social skills, identifying & managing emotions like anger, and solving problems creatively. The program appears to raise grades as well as to improve behavior.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p. 55-56
Sep 25, 1996
On Abortion:
Cairo Document: right to abortion but not as family planning
The Cairo Document, drafted at the International Conference on Population and Development in 1994, reaffirms that “in no case should abortion be promoted as a method of family planning.” And it recognizes “the basic right of all couples and individuals
to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing, and timing of their children and to have the information and means to do so.” Women & men should have the right to make this most intimate of all decisions free of discrimination or coercion.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p. 63
Sep 25, 1996
On Gun Control:
Get weapons off the streets; zero tolerance for weapons
The first step is to take weapons off the streets and to put more police on them. The Brady Bill, which my husband signed into law in 1995, imposes a 5-day waiting period for gun purchases, time enough for authorities to check out a buyer’s record
and for the buyer to cool down about any conflict he might have intended the gun to resolve. Since it was enacted, more than 40,000 people with criminal records have been prevented from buying guns.
The 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act banned 19 types of military-style assault weapons whose only purpose is to kill people.As part of a “zero tolerance” policy for weapons, drugs, and other threats to the
safety of teachers and students, the President signed an executive order decreeing that any student who comes to school with a gun will be expelled and punished as a condition of federal aid.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.126
Sep 25, 1996
On Crime:
Supports citizen patrols & 3-Strikes-You’re-Out
The first step is to take weapons off the streets and to put more police on them. 25,000 new police officers are being trained, with the goal of adding 75,000 more by the end of the decade. Taking a cue from what’s worked in the past, cities are
deploying officers differently, getting them out from behind desks and putting them back on the sidewalks, where they can get to know the people who live and work on the streets they patrol. They will be doing what is called “community policing.”
The other half of community policing, of course, is the community’s role. Citizens have to be active participants in crime prevention.
In Houston, nearly a thousand new officers added to the city’s police force since 1991 have been joined by thousands of citizen patrollers observing and reporting suspicious or criminal behavior in an anticrime campaign.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.126-127
Sep 25, 1996
On Families & Children:
Teens not ready for sex; provide havens for alternatives
After many years of working with and listening to American adolescents, I don’t believe they are ready for sex or its potential consequences--parenthood, abortion, sexually transmitted diseases--and
I think we need to do everything in our power to discourage sexual activity and encourage abstinence. Young people can learn to value the intimacy of friendships with the opposite sex as well as their own, can enjoy being in groups as well as couples.
Those kinds of relationships need adult support, including the time it takes to organize gatherings for kids, instead of turning them loose in malls, video arcades, or the streets.
Homes, schools, churches, and communities should provide havens for kids who want an alternative. These same entities have to pitch in when it comes to educating kids about sex.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.149
Sep 25, 1996
On Drugs:
Involved parents most influential in reducing teen drug use
Some factors that increase the risk of substance abuse in adolescents deserve emphasis. Casual attitudes towards marijuana and minors’ access to cigarettes raise the likelihood that teenagers will make a sad progression to more serious drug use
& earlier sexual activity. Dropping out of school puts the child at greater risk, as does having a parent who is an abuser of alcohol or drugs.One reason my husband is adamant about curbing smoking is the fact that he learned firsthand in his own
family, about the slippery slope that begins with the use of one addictive substance and leads to other destructive behaviors.
The characteristics that keep kids from using drugs are hard to quantify but not to understand. Children who truly grasp tha
they have a choice to make in the matter are more likely to make a responsible one. So are children with high self-esteem. Most influential of all is the optimism & awareness that comes from knowing their parents are interested & involved in their lives.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.152-153
Sep 25, 1996
On Education:
Allow student prayer, but no religious instruction
To bring reason & clarity to this often contentious issue, my husband’s administration developed a statement of principles concerning permissible religious activities in the public schools. The complete guidelines include:- Students may participate
in prayer during the school day, as long as they do so in a non-disruptive manner and when they are not engaged in school activities.
- Schools should open their facilities to student religious organizations on the same terms as other groups.
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Students should be free to express their beliefs about religion in school assignments.
- Schools may not provide religious instruction, but they may teach about the Bible, civic values and virtue, and moral codes, as long as they remain neutral with
respect to the promotion of any particular religion.
This last point is particularly important, [because religious institutions, parents, & schools share] the responsibility of helping children to develop moral values and a social conscience.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.162-163
Sep 25, 1996
On Civil Rights:
Affirmative living: involve entire village against racism
There is probably no more important task parents--and the rest of the village--face than raising children not only to tolerate but to respect the differences among people and to recognize the rewards that come from serving others.
I call this affirmative living--the positive energy we derive from taking pride in who we are and from having the confidence and moral grounding to reach out to those who are different.Some of the most effective approaches to promoting affirmative
living are those that involve the entire village. An annual event in Boston called Team Harmony brings middle and high school students together with local sports figures and business leaders to take a stand against prejudice and bigotry. After the Team
Harmony event in 1994, many students wrote about the positive messages they received. “Since the event, I want to do all that I can to stop racism,” one of them wrote. “I want everyone to live in peace & harmony, where there is no hatred & no violence.”
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.172-179
Sep 25, 1996
On Families & Children:
Family Leave Act is a good start; paid leave better
When I became pregnant in 1979, my law firm did not have a maternity leave policy. I wound up with a four-month maternity leave that enabled me to spend much-needed time getting accustomed to my new role as a mother.
But most new parents don’t meet with anything like this kind of accommodation.The Family and Medical Leave Act guarantees unpaid leave to employees in firms with more than 50 workers.
Many parents, however, cannot afford to forgo pay for even a few weeks, and very few employers in America offer paid maternity leave.
Only about half of all female workers of childbearing age are eligible for short-term disability benefits that would
cover pregnancy and childbirth, because the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, while it prohibits discrimination against these conditions, does not mandate coverage where none exists.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.198-199
Sep 25, 1996
On Corporations:
Family-friendly work policies are good for business
One of the most hopeful signs I have seen is the growing interest of the business community in assisting employees with child care. Businesses are recognizing that when employees miss work to stay home with sick children, the bottom line suffers too.
The Du Pont Company was one of the first large companies to institute work-family programs such as job sharing and subsidized emergency child care. A study of employees confirmed the view that family-friendly policies are a good business practice.
On October 31, 1995, I hosted an event at the White House honoring 21 companies in the American Business Collaboration for Quality Dependent Care that have pledged to contribute $100 million for child and dependent care in 56 cities.
All the companies participating believe in our theme: ‘Doing together what none of us can afford to do alone.’
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.220-221
Sep 25, 1996
On Education:
Supports Goals 2000: hardly the stuff of revolution
As soon as Goals 2000 passed, it was attacked by extremists, who stirred up anxious parents with visions of totalitarian control over their children’s minds and of “secular humanists” stealing their children’s souls. What are these goals that promote suc
reactions: By 2000- All children in America will start school ready to learn
- High school graduation rates will increase to at least 90%
- All students will leave grades 4, 8, and 12 having demonstrated competency in challenging subject matter
- US students will be first in the world in science & math
- Every adult will be literate and will possess the skills necessary to compete in a global economy
- Every school will be free of drugs & violence
- Teachers will have access to continuing
education
- Every school will promote partnerships with parents.
These goals are hardly the stuff of revolution and are not likely to be fully achieved by 2000, We cannot expect to reverse decades of declining standards in a few years.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.242-243
Sep 25, 1996
On Education:
Supports public school choice and charter schools
Some critics of public schools urge greater competition among schools as a way of returning control from bureaucrats to parents and teachers. I find their argument persuasive and I favor promoting choice among public schools, much as the President’s
Charter Schools Initiative encourages. Charter schools are public schools created and operated under a charter. They may be organized by parents, teachers, or others. The idea is that they should be freed from regulations that stifle innovation,
so they can focus on getting results. By 1995, 19 states had enacted charter school laws about 200 schools have been granted charters.
The Improving America’s Schools Act, passed in October 1994 with the President’s support, provided federal funds
for a wide range of reforms, including launching charter schools. Federal funding is needed to break through bureaucratic attitudes that block change and frustrate students and parents, driving some to leave public schools.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.244-245
Sep 25, 1996
On Jobs:
Recently “we’re in it together” became “you’re on your own”
In recent years, long-established expectations about doing business have given way under the pressures of the modern economy. Too many companies are driven more by the need to ensure that investors get good quarterly returns. Too often, this means that
they view most employees as costs, not investments, and that they expend less concern on job training, employee profit sharing, family-friendly policies, shared decision-making, or even fair pay raises. Even workers’ jobs may be sacrificed as executive
seek short-term profits by moving production to countries where wages are lower and environmental and other regulations less stringent. Instead of “We’re all in this together,” the message from the top is frequently, “You’re on your own.” The growing
inequality of incomes has serious implications for children. America’s turbo-charged economy has produced cheaper and better goods and greater efficiency, but it also has created serious social dislocations that undermine family and community values.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.272-273
Sep 25, 1996
On Corporations:
Businesses play social role in US; gov’t oversight required
For those who live in urban areas with few businesses of any kind, the impact of changes in the private sector is most direct & devastating, with high unemployment & crime, drug abuse, welfare dependency, & school failure. Problems elsewhere eventually
affect us all [so] government has a big responsibility to help remedy them. But its resources are limited.Other developed countries, like Japan & Germany, are more committed to social stability than we have been, and they tailor their economic policie
to maintain it. We have chosen a different path, leaving more of our resources in the private sector.
As a society, we have a choice to make. We can permit the marketplace largely to determine the values & well-being of the village, or we can continue,
as we have in the past, to expect business to play a social as well as an economic role. That means we have to look realistically at what government must require business to do, principally in the areas of health, safety, the environment [and so on].
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.274-275
Sep 25, 1996
On Social Security:
Respect unique power of government to meet social needs
Competing visions of the role of government and the rights of individuals exist all along the political spectrum. Most of us hold a point of view that exists somewhere between the extremes. We may grumble about taxes, but we generally support programs
like veterans’ benefits, Social Security, and Medicare, along with public education, environmental protection, and some sort of social safety net for the poor. We are wary of government interference with private initiative or personal belief and the
excessive influence of special interests on the political system. We respect the unique power of government to meet certain social needs and acknowledge the need to limit its powers.In times of profound social change like the present, extreme views
hold out the appeal of simplicity. By ignoring the complexity of the forces that shape our personal and collective circumstances, they offer us scapegoats. Yet they fail to provide a viable pathway from the cold war to the global village.
Source: It Takes A Village, by Hillary Clinton, p.286
Sep 25, 1996
On Families & Children:
Chelsea benefited from “village” & from two parents
When I wrote It Takes a Village ten years ago, our daughter Chelsea, a lively teen, was engaged with school, church, ballet, and friends. Now that Chelsea is grown up, I look back and see more clearly than ever how much we benefited from the village
every step of the way and how much better off she is for having not just two parents, but other caring adults in her corner. And I have yet to meet a parent who didn’t feel the same way.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xi-xii
Dec 12, 2006
On Families & Children:
It takes a village to raise a child, in interdependent world
The African proverb “It takes a village to raise a child” summed up for me the commonplace conclusion that, like it or not, we are living in an interdependent world where what our children hear, see, feel, and learn will affect how they grow up and
who they turn out to be. The five years since 9/11 have reinforced one of my main points: How children are raised anywhere can impact our lives and our children’s futures.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xii
Dec 12, 2006
On Families & Children:
Mother’s difficult childhood sparked concern for kids
In this book and my autobiography, Living History, I wrote about my own mother’s difficult childhood. Abandoned by her teenage parents, mistreated by her grandparents, she was forced to go work as a mother’s helper when she was thirteen.
Caring for another family’s younger children while attending high school may sound harsh, but the experience of living in a strong, loving family gave my mother the tools she would need later when caring for her own home and children.
Learning about my mother’s childhood sparked my strong conviction that every child deserves a chance to live up to her God-given potential and that we should never quit on any child.
We all depend on adults whom we know and on those we may not to help
us inform, support, or protect our children. In the last ten years, science has proven how resilient children can be despite great obstacles. And that’s where other adults may step in, to help nurture children and to provide positive role models.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xii-xiii
Dec 12, 2006
On Technology:
Innovations make better parent-child connections at distance
Today’s electronic village has certainly complicated the challenge of parenting. When It Takes a Village was published, the Internet was largely the province of scientists; no one owned an iPod; and cell phones weighed as much as bricks.
Innovations are now coming at an exponentially faster pace, and media saturates our kids’ lives as never before. Many of these changes are for the good: when I was in college, a phone call home was rare and a flight home, a once-a-year luxury.
Now I know parents who see and speak to their kids every day by computer and video hookups, and I think how much Bill would have loved that when he was campaigning. But knowing that one third of kids under six have
TVs in their rooms, that the fashion industry is marketing its latest styles to preteen girls, and that predators stalk our children through the World Wide Web makes me thankful to have raised Chelsea in a less media-saturated time.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xiii-xiv
Dec 12, 2006
On Technology:
Introduced CAMRA to study how sex in media affects teens
A 2004 study found that teens who watch a lot of television with sexual content and more likely to initiate intercourse in the following year. Overexposure to highly-sexed television made kids act older--12-year-olds behaved like 14-year-olds.
A decade of new research confirms that heavy exposure to violent and sexually explicit media triggers unhealthy responses from boys and girls alike, regardless of race. But we don’t yet know the full effects of all this technology on our kids.
CAMRA, the Children and Media Research Advancement Act, which I introduced in the Senate, would coordinate and fund new research into the effects of viewing and using electronic media, including television, computers, video games, and the Internet,
on children.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xiv&305
Dec 12, 2006
On Tax Reform:
Expand child tax credit for child’s first year
As we learn more about the kind of intensive child care that gives our kids the best start, parents worry that their kids’ care doesn’t measure up. Our tax policies do not reflect the cost of raising children, which is why we should expand the child tax
credit for the first year of a child’s life to help parents stay home and give lower-income parents who receive government support for child care the option to sue the subsidies to cover the costs of staying home and caring for their own children.
I want to see the Family and Medical Leave Act expanded so that all families who need it can use it without losing their jobs. It is past time for our national politics to do more than just talk about family values.
We need to value families by helping them raise resilient, productive children.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xv
Dec 12, 2006
On Education:
Early education affects things from IQ to lifelong earnings
New research in childhood development establishes that a child’s environment affects everything from IW to future behavior patterns. These studies confirm the importance of breast-feeding infants, of setting aside time for family meals, and of empowering
parents to shield their children from predatory marketing and the violent and sexually explicit media that contribute to aggressive behavior, early sexual experimentation, obesity, and depression.
The case for quality early childhood education and programs like Head Start is stronger than ever, and we should expand them. According to a study conducted by Federal Reserve economist Rob Grunewald and conducted by
Nobel laureate economist James Heckman, high-quality preschool programs are among the most cost-effective public investments we make, lowering dependency and raising lifetime earnings.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p. xviii
Dec 12, 2006
On Families & Children:
Supported foster care adoptions as First Lady & as Senator
Many of the ideas from the first edition of this book about how to refocus the foster care system on the best interests of the child were later included in the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, which I worked on with the late Republican
Senator John Chafee of Rhode Island and others. After the passage of that legislation, foster adoptions increased 64% nationwide from 31,030 the year the law passed to 51,000 last year. As First Lady,
I met many young people aging out of foster care who had little of the emotional, social, and financial support families provide. I worked on the Foster Care Independence Act of 1999, which provides young people aging out of foster care with support
services, including access to health care, educational opportunities, job training, housing assistance, and counseling. In the Senate, we passed a law that provides financial incentives to people who adopt older children.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p.299-300
Dec 12, 2006
On Abortion:
Fought for years to get “Plan B” contraceptive on the market
In the last few years, we’ve seen major breakthroughs in research and effectiveness of contraceptives. For example, Plan B is a new emergency contraceptive that can prevent a pregnancy after another contraceptive has failed or after unprotected sex.
I fought for years to get Plan B on the market, so that fewer women will face the choice of abortion. It is now available for over-the-counter use by adult women.
I have proposed Prevention First, a bill that focuses on prevention of unwanted pregnancies through comprehensive education, emphasizing responsible decision-making and expanded access to contraception.
With these efforts, it’s my hope that the abortion rate will fall further.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p.301
Dec 12, 2006
On Health Care:
1997: Helped found State Children’s Health Insurance Program
As First Lady, I worked with members of Congress in creating the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) in the summer of 1997. It made a tremendous investment in the expansion of children’s health insurance, and it has had tremendous results.
Today, because of SCHIP the number of children who lack health insurance coverage has dropped from over 10 million in 1995 to some 8.3 million kids in 2005. However, the number of uninsured have grown in the general population over the last 10 years.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p.302
Dec 12, 2006
On Crime:
Pushed to expand AMBER alerts & for stricter sex penalties
Over the last several years, there has been a dramatic increase in media stories of abducted & abused children. Where there has not been an increase in the overall numbers of such cases, many families, and children, are more fearful. I have pushed for
legislation that would appoint a national coordinator for AMBER alerts, and alert system for missing children; provide additional protections for children, and establish stricter punishments for sex offenders. That legislation passed the Congress in 2003
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p.303
Dec 12, 2006
On Education:
2001: Proposed and passed National Teacher Corps
The standards and accountability movement has grown dramatically over the last decade. The No Child Left Behind Act became law, and it has laid bare the problems in many of our poorest, worst-performing schools.
We can no longer say that we didn’t know that these schools were failing some of our most vulnerable kids. To improve the quality of education, we need to improve instruction in the classroom.
Nationwide, two million teachers will leave teaching over the next decade. NYC already loses 30% more math teachers and 22% more science teachers than it certifies every year. IN 2001, I proposed the
National Teacher Corps, which brings teachers into the classroom, and a new initiative that would provide more schools with strong principals. Both became law.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p.304-305
Dec 12, 2006
On Jobs:
Minimum wage increases haven’t kept up with Congress’ wages
The last minimum wage increase was in 1996, when Congress and the president raised it to $5.15 an hour. However, the impact of the 1996-7 increase has been eroded by inflation. Adjusting for inflation, the minimum wage is at its lowest point in 50 years.
While minimum wage workers have not had a single raise, Congress has given itself $31,600 in pay raises. In the Senate, I’ve proposed blocking Congress from giving itself another raise until it lifts wages for workers.
Source: 2006 intro to It Takes A Village, by H. Clinton, p.306
Dec 12, 2006
Page last updated: Feb 24, 2019