State intervenes more often with minority children

• Published June 25, 2008

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American Indian children in Washington are more likely than their white neighbors to be removed from their home by social workers, and twice as likely to remain in foster care for more than two years.

Black children are almost twice as likely as whites to be referred to Child Protective Services, according to a report on race in the child welfare system released today.

The report –including data showing Asian children are referred to social worker half as often than whites – was no surprise to those involved in writing it.

Nationally, black, Hispanic and Indian children are involved in child welfare system more often, and stay in the system longer than average, said Marian Harris, a professor of social work from the University of Washington.

“But I am excited about the fact that we are going to develop a remediation plan. I’m a proactive person, and I want to see Washington move ahead,” Harris said.

A plan to address the racial disparities in the system is due Dec. 1. The plan will likely have to dig deeper into the reasons why some minorities are disproportionately represented in child welfare cases.

One key finding of Wednesday’s report was poverty was a major factor in driving referrals for neglect or abuse, across all races.

For more on this story, see Thursday's Olympian.