Social distancing? Working-class people don’t have that luxury
An unprecedented number of Americans have resorted to food banks for emergency supplies since the coronavirus pandemic triggered widespread layoffs.
The demand for food aid has increased as much as eightfold in some areas, according to an investigation by the Guardian, which gives a nationwide snapshot of the hunger crisis facing the US as millions become unemployed.
About one in three people seeking groceries at not-for-profit pantries last month have never previously needed emergency food aid, according to interviews with a dozen providers across the country.
The national guard has been deployed to help food banks cope with rising demand in cities including Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Phoenix amid growing concerns that supplies may run low as the crisis evolves. Overstretched food pantries are switching to drive-thrus and home deliveries to minimize the spread of Covid-19 as almost 300 million Americans are urged to stay at home.
“I’ve been in this business over 30 years, and nothing compares to what we’re seeing now. Not even when the steel mills closed down did we see increased demand like this,” said Sheila Christopher, director of Hunger-Free Pennsylvania, which represents 18 food banks across 67 counties.
Last year, 4.3bn meals were distributed to more than 40 million Americans through a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 pantries, schools, soup kitchens and shelters, according to Feeding America, the national food bank network. The working poor, elderly and disabled and infirm accounted for the vast majority of food bank users.
This week, the Guardian contacted food banks and pantries in nine states, which all reported unprecedented demand, plummeting donations from retailers, and a fall in personnel due to the coronavirus crisis.
This snapshot is representative of the national picture, according to Feeding America. “This is a perfect storm impacting food banking as we know it,” said a spokeswoman, Zuani Villarreal.
On Tuesday, Cleveland police and the Ohio national guard helped load boxes of groceries into cars at a new drive-thru pick-up service located in the huge downtown municipal car park.
At least 2,765 families were provided with a week’s groceries – 36% of them first-timers – compared with 1,500 at a similar event last week, when the queue stretched almost three miles. A cab driver, single mother who worked in hospitality and freelance photographer were among those requesting help for the first time.
The rust belt states are among the hardest hit by the coronavirus economic crisis. More than 187,000 Ohioans filed for unemployment benefits during the third week of March when businesses were closed by the governor – an extraordinary increase on the 7,046 claims filed the previous week, according to the Department of Labor.
The Greater Cleveland food bank received 800 calls to its helpline during one day last week – eight times the usual number. “I’ve never seen anything like it in over 20 years of service. We’re seeing people from every socio-economic level because the majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck,” said the food bank’s CEO, Kristin Warzocha.
Half of American adults have either no emergency savings or not enough to cover three months of living expenses, according to Bankrate’s 2019 Financial Security Index.
There was a similar dramatic scene in Phoenix, Arizona, where 1,500 people queued up for food boxes at the St Mary’s main office – compared with 450 just two weeks ago. Here, the national guard is also pitching in at the makeshift drive-thru centre as volunteer numbers have plummeted from 250 a day to less than 50, as the vast majority are senior citizens advised to stay home to minimize the risk of Covid-19.
In total, St Mary’s – the oldest known food bank in the world – supplies 700 pantries, shelters, churches and social service centres in seven counties where one in five children struggle with hunger.
“First we saw people who lived paycheck to paycheck, got laid off and didn’t know where the next meal was coming from, followed by those who had a couple of weeks of savings. Now, people who knew about us because they donated or volunteered are coming in for food,” said Jerry Brown, media spokesman for St Mary’s. “The 2008 recession doesn’t touch this. It’s a different ballgame.”
[…] Research & References of Social distancing? Working-class people don’t have that luxury|A&C Accounting And Tax Services Source […]
Comments are closed.
If you enjoy this site, please consider a donation. As a token of our appreciation, access to nearly 3000 preparedness and survival .PDF files will be available for FULL download!
Social distancing? Working-class people don’t have that luxury
Research & References of Social distancing? Working-class people don’t have that luxury|A&C Accounting And Tax Services
Source
0 Comments