Universal childcare push at City Hall park sees hundreds of parents and tots urge City Hall to lift economic hardships, provide free programs

Over one hundred parents and toddlers huddled outside of City Hall on Sunday to demand universal childcare for children as young as two years old.

While New Yorkers say the Big Apple is a wonderful city to raise kids, they also lament its financial impact on a family unit to put a child through early educational care. According to New Yorkers United for Child Care, which organized the Jan. 12 rally, on average, programs cost families $23,000 per child each year — placing economic hardships on young families, and especially for those with more than one tot.

“I started calculating what my childcare costs would be for two kids for the year, and it came out to be $59,000. I’m not talking about fancy pants programs. This is your regular, local daycare and preschool that was within walking distance of our apartment,” Stephanie Park of Brooklyn said. “That is money that our household should be using to pay student loans, to be putting towards a down payment on an apartment, or to be putting into our kids’ college.”

Many parents and guardians agreed with Park as they assembled in City Hall Park on Sunday, hoisting signs demanding universal childcare in one hand and their young child in the other despite the chilly winds.

They want the city to fund Universal 2-Care, offering free child care for children as young as two daily between 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Supporters also want the program to make such childcare accessible within a 15-minute walking distance of a household.

Parents and advocates say this is important not just because New Yorkers collectively spend $14 billion on childcare annually but also because they charge that 80% of brain growth in children happens before age 3, and they need important stimuli.

A slew of elected officials — including two mayoral candidates: City Comptroller Brad Lander and Queens state Sen. Jessica Ramos — joined the rally in support of the initiative.

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, who is running to replace Lander as city comptroller, declared that he believed if universal 2-Care became a reality, it would pay for itself since many parents currently forced to stay home with their children would be freed to achieve employment and, in turn, garner more money for the city.

“A city with a $100 billion budget can do this, and this will unleash economic activity because every parent who can then go back to work will generate income and tax revenue for the city,” Levine said. “In other parts of the world where this has been done, it has paid for itself. New York has to do this. We need this now.”

Politicians, advocates, and parents are asking for universal 2-Care To be included in the incoming budget.