To highlight some of the most severe and unique problems facing Black children, the National Black Child Development Institute has prepared this report on the status of Black children in 1980. Five critical issues are considered in detail: child care, education, health, youth, unemployment and child welfare. For each issue, the report discusses both the conditions that impinge on Black children as well as the responsiveness of government policies and programs to the children's needs. Evidence indicates that for many Black children current conditions remain as severe as they were for past generations. It is concluded that, while poverty and discrimination account for much of the disparity between the majority of children and Black youth, Black children also receive inadequate, underfunded, or misdirected services. To improve the conditions which produce stress for Black youth, government must design services that recognize and utilize strengths of Black families. Preventive services designed and administered by Blacks should be implemented to improve the hazardous conditions Black children face. (Author/RH)