Stop TANF-funded Marriage Programs
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) (also known as welfare or public assistance) is an important part of our social contract to help parents and children in poverty. Congress must vote on whether to continue TANF every five years. TANF is due to be reauthorized in 2010.
When President Clinton "ended welfare as we knew it," he allowed Congress to state that the purposes of TANF include promoting marriage and two-parent families, and reducing births to unmarried parents. Then the Bush Administration used TANF funds to give $150 million per year to hundreds of marriage programs around the country.
| Learn more about government-funded marriage programs. |
Those programs are fighting hard to keep their grants flowing. We must fight just as hard to put that money back into programs that are proven to ease the pain of poverty and help families leave poverty behind, regardless of their marital status.
The text in the shaded box below, plus the signatures and comments, will be delivered to federal officials during the TANF reauthorization process.
Please sign, share your experiences, and tell your friends!
Congress should state that the purpose of TANF is to end poverty, not to promote marriage. Congress should not reauthorize the Healthy Marriage Initiatives.
| Number | Date | Name | Location | If you have personal ... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 180 | Tue Feb 09 09:45:59 EST 2010 | Katie Goldstein | NY | |
| 179 | Mon Feb 08 21:01:44 EST 2010 | Ken Rosso | PA | |
| 178 | Mon Feb 08 16:08:02 EST 2010 | Rebecca Ennen | NY | |
| 177 | Mon Feb 08 13:01:22 EST 2010 | Molly McHenry | Brooklyn, OH | |
| 176 | Mon Feb 08 12:59:38 EST 2010 | Rebecca Subar | PA | |
| 175 | Mon Feb 08 12:05:42 EST 2010 | Nava EtShalom | Philadelphia, PA | |
| 174 | Mon Feb 08 11:34:06 EST 2010 | Karey Bacon | Philadelphia, PA | |
| 173 | Mon Feb 08 11:24:26 EST 2010 | lezlie frye | NY | |
| 172 | Mon Feb 08 11:17:46 EST 2010 | Sara Narva | PA | |
| 171 | Mon Feb 08 11:07:54 EST 2010 | Hannah Mermelstein | NY | |
| 170 | Mon Feb 08 11:07:52 EST 2010 | Alex Weissman | NY | |
| 169 | Mon Feb 08 10:47:03 EST 2010 | Alissa Wise | NY | |
| 168 | Thu Feb 04 17:09:06 EST 2010 | Jenny Salata | Knoxville, TN | |
| 167 | Thu Feb 04 04:30:43 EST 2010 | Linda Masterson | Orlando, FL | As a single person, I resent the implication that I would be a better parent, or would be better equipped to care for a child if I was married. The tax codes, in fact the entire system of government ... |
| 166 | Wed Feb 03 22:45:33 EST 2010 | Lindsay Millar | Ottawa, ON | |
| 165 | Wed Feb 03 20:46:04 EST 2010 | Ira Rosen | Brooklyn, NY | |
| 164 | Wed Feb 03 19:41:34 EST 2010 | Anonymous | Manhattan, KS | |
| 163 | Sun Jan 31 18:25:52 EST 2010 | Debra Gram | Harrisonburg, VA | |
| 162 | Sun Jan 31 11:08:59 EST 2010 | Cole Thompson | Sonora, CA | |
| 161 | Sun Jan 31 09:38:58 EST 2010 | Kathryn Snow | VA | |
| 160 | Sun Jan 31 00:34:39 EST 2010 | Kathleen Collins | Berkeley, CA | |
| 159 | Sat Jan 30 20:35:01 EST 2010 | Carolyn Marie Fugit | Wichita, KS | |
| 158 | Fri Jan 29 11:32:18 EST 2010 | Sam Miller | Brooklyn, NY | |
| 157 | Thu Jan 28 15:09:57 EST 2010 | Michael Yarbrough | Brooklyn, NY | |
| 156 | Thu Jan 28 10:24:55 EST 2010 | Robert Cowles | Muskegon, MI |
