Raising Rochester · Raising Rochester, a podcast from The Children's Agenda

S2:E5– Children's Defense Fund President & CEO, Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson and the Role of State and Local Policy in Equitable Outcomes for Children

·41 min·1 clip

My formation came together in a meaningful way in the midst of an uprising at Ferguson.

Reverend Dr. Starsky Wilson discusses the Children's Defense Fund's 50-year history, organizational evolution, and contemporary strategy for systemic change. Wilson shares his personal journey from Dallas through seminary to nonprofit leadership, highlighting how lived experience informs policy work. The conversation emphasizes shifting from moral authority grounded in religious voice to authority grounded in young people's lived experience, intersectional analysis of interconnected policy challenges, and the necessity of solidarity across diverse constituencies. Wilson articulates CDF 1.0 (research and policy), CDF 2.0 (organizing and power-building), and emerging approaches centering youth voice and participation in policy creation.

As heard by us

Child advocacy, trust, and solidarity, traced from national roots to practical action.

Raising Rochester centers a thoughtful conversation about child advocacy and the steady work of improving children's lives. Reverend Dr. Starsky Wilson gives the Children's Defense Fund a clear sense of its civil rights and anti-poverty roots, then connects that history to the…

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Why you'd press play

When you want a reflective conversation about children's well-being, trust, and the gap between philanthropy and the ground.

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