Editorial for July 12, 2007 edition:


Children come first

One need not be a member of Northeast Philadelphia’s large elderly population to feel bad for Morris and Mildred Brasovankin. Anyone with a heart and soul should feel bad for the grandparents from Oxford Circle, who’ve have been getting a raw deal in their quest to gain custody of their 5-year-old grandson, Steven.

Here’s a case of two loving grandparents, well into their twilight years, who’ve been stymied for no good reason by the city’s Department of Human Services, the agency that’s supposed to see to the best interests of its citizens, including the young.

The Brasovankins only want to care for Steven — whose parents were not always able to care for the little boy — which is what they’ve been doing since he was an infant. Instead they’re getting the runaround from the courts and DHS.

The real loser here, of course, is Steven. It shouldn’t take someone with the brains and wisdom of a rocket scientist to realize that he belongs with his grandparents for as long as they’re ready, willing and able to nurture him.

If justice prevails, they will be granted full custody when they go to court next Tuesday to prove their fitness as the boy’s guardians. Steven belongs with his grandparents, not a foster family.

If DHS, which doesn’t exactly have a squeaky-clean record when it comes to looking after children, persists in making Steven and his grandparents the victims, shame on DHS.

Meanwhile, if members of Congress want to shock the public by doing something meaningful, they will pass legislation that will delineate the circumstances by which able-bodied grandparents can get custody of grandchildren who come from homes that are broken or otherwise troubled. Some kids are better off with grandparents from day one, anyway.

The time for a "Grandparents Bill of Rights" is upon us. Grandparents have rights too. Without them, we wouldn’t be here. ••

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