EXCERPTS
I agree that the death of Duy-An Nguyen has "thrust unregulated daycares into the spotlight." My question is: Why should it take the death of an innocent baby to draw attention to what has been a major problem in child care for decades?
Education Minister Leona Dombrowsky stated that it is parents' responsibility to pay some attention to their child-care providers. This comment was hugely insensitive to Duy-An Nguyen's parents, as it suggests they should have known the arrangement was unsafe.
The bottom line is that there is no choice for working parents. Finding quality regulated child care that is affordable and accessible is like winning the lottery. The lack of a child-care system has failed the Nguyen family and will continue to fail families until we see some action from our politicians.
Lyndsay Macdonald
Early Childhood Education student, Ryerson University
- reprinted from the Toronto Star