Gwen Moore

By Michael Fitzgerald Reflecting a growing movement to tease out poverty from the many reasons U.S. children are taken into foster care, a new bill before Congress requires states to avoid maltreatment investigations that center solely on a family’s homelessness or lack of financial resources.

Dozens of New Jersey parents, advocates and officials gathered Tuesday for a unique celebration of families that overcame or avoided separation by the child welfare system.

A bill now before Congress would suspend deadlines for child welfare agencies across the country to seek the most extreme consequences in America’s civil legal system: termination of parental rights.

Dosha DJay Joi’s faith ran so deep, he signed onto his last Thursday Bible study with his friend Tasha Snowden, via video feed from his hospital bed. Days later he would die at age 28 from the coronavirus that has claimed more than 108,000 American lives.

Family and friends have a common saying about Dosha DJay Joi of Milwaukee, who died last week at age 28 from coronavirus-related complications: He lived up to the sweet sound of his name.