Due to the ongoing shutdown of the federal government, California will not be able to distribute CalFresh benefits. Approximately 5.4 million Californians — or one in seven — may not have the resources to purchase food for their families. More than half of them live in households with children, and many others are seniors or people living with disabilities.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
When we met for the first time back in 2010 to discuss combining the efforts of No Kid Hungry and the End Hunger Network, we acknowledged that all of the ingredients for ending childhood hunger were already in place. We’d each already worked on the issue for more than 25 years and now found ourselves at the Boys and Girls Club in Goleta, surrounded by the very kids we hoped to help. One of us, a veteran of Capitol Hill and a nonprofit executive, had led and grown an anti-hunger organization into a national effort; the other, an actor with more than 70 film and TV credits, brought passion, creativity and reach.
We shared the conviction that childhood hunger was a solvable problem in a country with no shortage of food or food assistance programs like school lunch, school breakfast and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), all with bipartisan support.
In the years that followed, we traveled the country together — from California and Florida to Arkansas, Montana and Washington, D.C., visiting school meal programs, meeting with elected officials and corporate partners, building public support and needed political will. We distributed hundreds of millions of dollars to thousands of community organizations and school districts doing the hard work on the front lines to ensure that No Kid Hungry actually meant no child was left hungry.
The ensuing results were historic: childhood hunger decreased to record low levels. More than 3 million kids were added to the school breakfast program. In the summer, when food assistance is a challenge because schools are closed, the number of kids accessing meals increased from 3 million to 18 million. Though our work was not finished, it felt like we had a glimpse of the finish line.
Today, that progress is at grave risk. Because of the recently enacted Republican-supported H.R. 1, 97% of CalFresh households are likely to see reduced or eliminated monthly benefits due to revised eligibility requirements and state budget constraints.
The only thing worse than letting SNAP benefits run out is not using the $5 billion to $6 billion in reserves kept for situations exactly like this. Arguably, both sides are responsible for the government shutdown. Inarguably, only the U.S. Department of Agriculture is refusing to use available SNAP funds for children, seniors, veterans and disabled Americans.
These are decisions that can only be made by those who have never stood in line at a food pantry, trying to keep their kids occupied and distracted in the hope they will never remember it; those who have never had to choose between day-old bread and day-old everything else. No one wants this. Food should never be weaponized.
There is no “government efficiency” to be found in reversing decades of investments that have yielded such strong returns for America’s families. Food assistance has meant better students, higher test scores, healthier kids and stronger communities. Government efficiency dictates that we expand such programs, not curtail them.
Fortunately, when you look beyond the vitriol and intent to divide that characterizes so many Washington politicians, you find pragmatic mayors, governors and officials at the state and local level who recognize the need and the solutions and are committed to unite, not divide. They play a vital role in helping to execute the substantial food assistance benefits that still remain.
As we head into the holiday season, there will surely be heightened awareness of hunger in communities across the country.
But that need exists all year long. Charity is crucial and represents the best of the human spirit, but only substantial changes in policy can solve hunger and the poverty and lack of economic mobility from which it stems.
In the short-term, we can support community organizations committed to feeding people. In the long-term, we must advocate for policy change to address the root causes of hunger and poverty. Tell your elected officials that we have made too much progress to turn back now.
If there is one thing we’ve learned in our 15-year collaboration, it is that it takes more than food to fight hunger. It takes policies that create economic opportunity and lift families and children out of poverty.
Actor Jeff Bridges is founder of the End Hunger Network and the national spokesperson for Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign. Bill Shore is the founder and executive chair of Share Our Strength.
