Letter To Editor

Letter To Editor

Dear Editor:

We enjoyed the article “Hey, Unde" which appeared in last week’s Rappahannock News; we enjoyed it thoroughly until we got to the last paragraph. Maybe we are supersensitive when we see our alphabethpro grams mentioned, but we think there is calumny in that last paragraph. It’s not so much what was said as what was implied.

Implication #1 is that Aid to Dependent Children is a program for illegitimate children. Title IV of the Social Security Act says nothing about illegitimacy; what it does say is that the program is for children who are in need. The fact is that less than 10% of all illegitimate children born in Virginia are on the welfare rolls; the other 00% are cared for by their families or relatives without; public aid. We don’t hear much about the other 90%. Can it be tnat we are more concerned about our money than about the problem? Implication #2 is that it is a waste of the taxpayers’ money to support illegitimate children. There certainly is some thing rotten here, but it’s in the author’s thinking. Do we believe in punishing an innocent child for its parents’ behavior? In the long run deny ing aid to this group of chil dren would be far more costly "her the present program in L'-w-t'ns of health, delinquency, and crime. And here’s another thought; not many newborn babies are left on door-steps, or thrown in trash barrels, or buried in shallow graves. Could be that ADC has something to do with it. WJlile we’re on the subject( of rjjbe cost,, Of supporting children, we wonder where the au thor of this article lives. Not in Virginia, we feel sure. Our standard basic allowance for one child in ADC is $30 a month. For a mother and one child it is $59 a month. In addition, a small family is allowed a total of $14 a month for utilities, and total shelter