Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-05-08
U. 5. NegIects
Child Welfare,
Wender Says
House Group Urged
To Correct Conditions
In District Homes
By SARAH Finn.

Americans nave become as Cal"
lous to conditions in homes for
children as were the Ger
mans to conditions at Buchenwald
prison camp, Harry S. Wender,
chairman of the District Recreation
Board, declared today at a House
District Subcommittee hearing on
children's homes In the District.
To-day is We day and we should
dedicate ourselves to this mission
that we will rehabilitate our home
front before we begin on the rest Of
the world" Mr.. Wender said.
The hearing, held before the
Health Subcommittee of the House
District Committee, was called at
the request of the District Fedora
ton of Women's Clubs to discuss
conditions in homes for hayward
children in the District. These con-
ditions were discussed in a series
of articles in The Star last week.
Plenty of Investigations.
eve have had investigation after
investigation on these homes" Mr..
Wender declared. 1T is high time
members of Congress become as in
terested in conditions prevailing
here as they are in conditions at
German prison camps. If the pub
lie and Congress would see for them
selves what goes on in these So
called houses of correction there
would be no need for further re-
quests for appropriations.
C1ryaro1 III
tives described the medieval con-
ditions" at the Receiving Home for
Children, $500 Loughborough road
NV, and the Industrial Home
School, 1858 Wisconsin avenue NV.
"Once a child is sent to one OF
these homes-a quagmire of the low
est morals-regardless of how inno-
cent he may be, he soon becomes
beyond rehabilitation," Mrs. Leslie
B. Wright, chairman of the fedora
tons Legislative Committee, de-
clared.
Asks for New Buildings.
The federation requested the COM
mittee to urge appropriations for
immediate construction of new
buildings for the Receiving Home
and Industrial Home School and
asked speedy action to clear up such
conditions as lack of segregation,
filth, lack of medical care and lack
of recreation. Similar resolutions
were presented yesterday by the
federation to a hearing of the Sem
ate District Committee.
The women representatives also
urged legislation Furnishing the pa
rents of delinquent children, instead
of the children themselves.
Wilbur S. Finch, president of the
Federation of Citizens Associations,
also spoke, urging the House Com
mittee to give the resolutions all pos
sible support.
Gordon Atherholt, president of the
Macarthur Boulevard Citizens As
ISOLATION, asked the committee to in
terfere with the present plans of the
Board of Public Welfare to move
the Industrial Home School to the
buildings now occupied by the Ma
tional Training School for Girls,
5000 Loughborough road NV.
New Hearing Set.
Chairman Mcmillan announced
another meeting would be held
week from today at which the Com
missioners and members of the
Board of Public Welfare would be
asked to suggest needed improve
ments.
Meanwhile, the 32d Annual Con-
vention of the District Congress of
Parents and Teachers, meeting at
the Departmental Auditorium, asked
that adequate appropriation" for
new industrial home school be in
Guided in the 1916 District budget.
Mrs. Y. D. Mathes, vice president,
said the resolution in support of a
replacement for the present home
had been inserted in a previously
prepared slate of resolutions after
publication Of a series of articles in
The Star discussing conditions at
the home. 1t was passed unanimone-
1y and xryif ho,1t Jicc,rccioo