Hunger in the US

1
Hunger in the US

• George McGovern said in 1972, "To admit the
  existence of hunger in America is to confess that
  we have failed in meeting the most sensitive and
  painful of human needs. To admit the existence of
  widespread hunger is to cast doubt on the
  efficacy of our whole system."

2
Children in Poverty
3
Key concepts

• Food Insecurity, Hunger, Malnutrition
• Poverty Threshold
• Public Assistance
• Food Banks and Pantries
• Vulnerability

4
Key Question

• What economic and political government structures
  work to alleviate and entrench the problem of
  hunger?

5
Food Assistance- Benefits and Problems

• Public Assistance
• History of Public assistance
• War on Hunger
• Welfare to work
• The Food Stamp Program
• Private Assistance
• Food Banks and pantries
• Connects to NESTLE piece (1 this week) in your
  reader

6
Government Assistance A History

• Depression Era
• Widespread hunger, malnutrition and even
  starvation
• First Food aid policies introduced in 1939
• 1939-1943 Food stamp program introduced
• Goal
• alleviate hunger and malnutrition by permitting
  low-income households to obtain a nutritious diet
  through regular forms of trade
• War and Post-war
• 1940s full employment food aid switched to cash
  assistance
• Post War problem of hunger exists but is hidden
• Hunger discovered 1967 in Mississippi Delta
• Kennedy demanded food aid reform
• Resisted under Johnson but 1969 increase in
  funding nearly 5x
• Sets absolute poverty threshold

7
Measuring Poverty

• Set by Johnson 1969 in his War on Poverty
  Economist Molly Orshankys measure
• Based on cheapest of 4 food plans designed by the
  USDA
• designed for temporary or emergency consumption
  when funds are low
• Determines who gets welfare benefits and food
  assistance
• Absolute not relative fixed to measure
  progress
• BUT Highly politicized and controversial!!

8
(No Transcript)
9
Nixon War on Hunger

• Every time I am reminded that we have more
  freedom, more opportunity, more prosperity than
  any people in the world, that we have the highest
  rate of growth of any industrial nation, that
  Americans have more jobs at higher wages than in
  any country in the worldthat the incomparable
  productivity of America's farmers has made it
  possible for us to launch a winning war against
  hunger in the United States
• 1969-1977 1.2 billion 8.3 billion assigned to
  food assistance
• Extend food stamp program nationwide

10
Recession and Cutbacks

• Recession under Carter
• Welfare cutbacks under Reagan and Democratic
  congress
• 12.6b from food stamp program
• Based on free market ideology and scaling back of
  government
• ?1980s hunger and poverty rise
• Hunger increasing at a frenetic pace
• USDA

11
Welfare to Work

• 1996 Clinton Personal Responsibility and Work
  Opportunity Reconciliation Act
• Based upon
• Free Market ideology and role of market in
  reducing poverty
• Work not welfare is always preferable
• Government should limit spending
• Welfare should be decentralized and privatized

12
Key Policies

• Decentralizes welfare to state level
• Repeals Aid to Families with Dependent Children
  (AFDC) ? Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
  (TANF)
• Temporary limits on welfare (5 years)
• Requirement to find work (2 years)

13
Key Impacts Work?

• Welfare rolls declined by 50
• California welfare rolls dropped by 27
• of former welfare recipients in work has grown
  from 19 to 40
• 50 leaving 1996 found a job
• BUT
• Many people entered poverty wage work
• In 1997 median hourly wage of women leaving
  welfare was 6.61/hr
• 1/3 back on welfare by1997
• 1/4 were not working or with a partner working by
  1997
• 1/4 former recipients reported in 1997 that they
  were too ill, disabled or unable to find work

14
Key Impacts Food Assistance

• 1996-2001 Food stamp program dropped by 10
  million
• 2002 (FRAC) people leaving welfare are very
  vulnerable to hunger.
• Only 43 those leaving welfare who are still
  eligible for food stamps still get them.

15
Food Stamps

• Electronic benefit Transfer system (EBT)
• In 2003 21.26 million participating
• 75/ person/ month (2.50/day)
• Eligibility depends on income and interview
• 88 have gross incomes below poverty line
• 79.3 benefits were children
• 18 of households include an elderly person
• 23 include a disabled person
• 49 households had 1 people working

16
Problems with Food Stamps

• Many are excluded
• Sanctions on income/ assets
• Immigrants
• 3/4 who are eligible do not receive them
• Why?

17
Food Banks/ Pantries

• http//www.secondharvest.org/
• Key sources http//www.secondharvest.org/who_help
  s_us/financial_donors.html

18
Future Food Assistance

• 2007 Farm Bill 7 billion cut back in food
  assistance over 5 years
• Agricultural subsidies continue to rise

19
ConclusionsVulnerable Groups

• Many individuals fall into 1
• 1.Working Poor
• 2. Military families
• 3. Children
• 4. Elderly
• 5. Rural poor
• 6. Female headed households
• 7. Ethnic minorities
• 8. Immigrants
• 9. Homeless People
• 10. Some suburban families (rich in assets but
  not cash, highly indebted)

20
Key Conclusions

• Hunger (worldwide) linked to lack of access not
  insufficient food production
• U.S 36-38 million in the US are food insecure
• 12 million children, 4.4 million are repeatedly
  hungry
• Large cities rural areas at high risk
• Hunger is raced, classed, gendered and
  generational

21
Conclusions

• Political history of Government Food assistance
• Food Stamps
• Welfare expenditures and cut backs
• Welfare to Work
• Problems and benefits of these programs
• Impacts of cutbacks
• Why under used?