Disparity

Paula Poundstone, a successful comedian and adoptive and foster parent, took her kids for ice cream one day and it turned out, had been tippling a bit around the same time. She had been drinking and transporting her children in a vehicle—really inexcusable. Her children were removed from her home. The district attorney brought felony child endangerment charges against her. She spent time in jail, she went into rehab, relapsed, went back to rehab, she took responsibility, and pled guilty to two charges.

Eventually, the adopted children were returned to her but the foster children were not. There was no hue and cry to forgive Poundstone or to understand Poundstone’s disease and no one hailed her with “Welcome back,” when she was finally clawed her way out from under the legal rubble. The foster care system did not scream out, “thanks for eight great years—glad you got help—we have many more kids who need help—interested?” Good thing, she was too busy trying to resurrect her formerly very successful career and family.

Today in the paper, the sports page was filled with the great news! Hooray for Ron Artest! Hooray for Ron Artest of the Sacramento Kings who has been allegedly involved in innumerable domestic altercations. Hooray, he got out of the latest scrape (it’s not the animal neglect charges that keep cropping up and being dismissed and it’s not about the pummeling of fans in the stands he is so famous for) involving the latest altercation between him and his baby mama. He got community service, probation, and work release so it’s all good. Oh, and a year of anger management classes—did he lose his job? His family? Our loser Kings will keep their hero—the guy who has done so much for Sacramento and humanity in general.

There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest. ~Elie Wiesel

 Published on: May 29, 2006