Richard Wexler is the executive director of the National Coalition For Child Protection Reform, a nonprofit that works for systemic reform in the child welfare system. A former journalist, Wexler applies his reporting skills to his advocacy work, issuing in-depth papers arguing in favor of the organization’s primary mission: To reduce the number of children who are taken from their families when the government misinterprets family poverty for neglect.
How did you become involved with child welfare reform?
In 1976 I was a journalism student and I was working on a story that involved a young woman who had been in nine foster homes since she was 9 years old. … We talked for 2 1/2 hours and I knew it was a story I’d keep coming back to. The facts on the ground were not matching what experts were saying and it was difficult for journalists to cover the wide array of opinions out there. … I eventually wrote a book, “Wounded Innocence,” and that became my bridge from journalism into advocacy.
Is being in the Washington area beneficial to your cause?
This could really be done from anywhere. Most of the decisions in child welfare are on the state and local level, and Congress sets up the framework. But having a foster care panic in our own backyard does keep things interesting. There is also some upcoming legislation in Congress that we hope to weigh in on, and being in D.C. will help foster that.
What brought you to D.C. originally?
I followed my wife here.
You’ve spent the majority of your career as a journalist — do you miss it?
That’s right, my most recent journalism job was as a writer and copy editor for CNN. Before that I was at WTOP and before that I was at the Albany Times Union. I very much enjoy what I do now. I don’t miss it, but not because I didn’t enjoy what I was doing. I put everything I learned in my first career to work in my new career. I still write reports; it’s a form of advocacy journalism.
