The wealthiest nation on earth has 26 million people who can’t get enough to eat. An analysis by The Washington Post found:
More Americans are going hungry now than at any point during the deadly coronavirus pandemic, according to a Post analysis of new federal data — a problem created by an economic downturn that has tightened its grip on millions of Americans and compounded by government relief programs that expired or will terminate at the end of the year. Experts say it is likely that there’s more hunger in the United States today than at any point since 1998, when the Census Bureau began collecting comparable data about households’ ability to get enough food.
No place has been hit harder than the largest city in Texas.
More than 1 in 5 adults in Houston reported going hungry recently, including 3 in 10 adults in households with children. The growth in hunger rates has hit Hispanic and Black households harder than White ones, a devastating consequence of a weak economy that has left so many people trying to secure food even during dangerous conditions.
The Houston Food Bank is seeing long lines and fewer volunteers as they work to distribute more than 800,000 pounds of food every day. https://t.co/8eMJqhiHSg
— HOUmanitarian ™ (@HOUmanitarian) November 24, 2020
This week, we’ve seen videos from all over the country with people waiting in line for hours to get food.
Cars wait in line during a Greater Pittsburgh Community Food bank drive-up food distribution in Duquesne, Penn. on Monday.
📷 Gene J. Puskar / AP pic.twitter.com/DZRHZ52naX
— NBC News (@NBCNews) November 25, 2020
Today on CNN, restauranteur Tom Colicchio remarked:
“If I was watching this on CNN, I would think I was looking at a third world country. Yet this is America and we have chosen to do nothing about this right now. And it’s great that you’re depicting stories of people who are helping right now and people want to help around the holiday season, but the people they are helping, they are going to be hungry tomorrow and the next day and the next day and it’s not going to be Thanksgiving. So we need massive government help right now.”
The Brookings Institution writes:
One of the most striking and consistent indicators of ongoing hardship is an elevated level of food insecurity in American households. Food insecurity sits at the intersection of the economy and health; it is measure that a household lacks sufficient resources to provide adequate nutrition to its members.
Food insecurity has reached crisis levels.
As the holidays approach, 1 in 6 families with children are having trouble putting food on the table. We need a real relief package now—not more games from @senatemajldr and @realDonaldTrump. https://t.co/MSqkaJuorq
— Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) November 25, 2020
Slate reports: Over 43 million families now rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and another 6.4 million rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). These federally funded programs, administered by state and local governments, help low-income families and their children put food on the table.
This is a line of 6,000 cars waiting at a Dallas food bank this week.
In the richest country in the world. pic.twitter.com/8Zr6agyF8W
— Haitham Ahmed, MD, MPH (@haithamahmedmd) November 21, 2020
Watch more from PBS above.