October 2012 Food Stamp Challenge Concludes
Food Stamp Challenge Concludes with DC Council Resolution opposing SNAP Cuts and Advocacy on the Hill
Over 50 D.C. residents participated in the DC Food Stamp Challenge which took place October 9-15, 2012. On October 16th, at the conclusion of the Challenge, three advocacy events happened. First, Councilmember Mary Cheh (Ward 3) who participated in the DC Food Stamp Challenge introduced the “Sense of the Council on Support for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Resolution of 2012” , whose purpose was “to declare the sense of the Council on its support of SNAP and its critical impact on the low-income residents of the District of Columbia.” The Resolutions also speaks out against proposed cuts to SNAP in the Farm Bill and mentions the Challenge and key partners. Read the Resolution (pdf).
Also on Tuesday anti-hunger advocates and Challenge participants visited D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton on Capitol Hill to thank her for her support of the SNAP/Food Stamp Program and for signing onto H.R 760 (pdf), a resolution that opposes the $16 billion in cuts to SNAP in the House version of the Farm Bill. Finally, D.C. Hunger Solutions sent out an action alert to our network asking D.C. residents to call their friends in another state and ask their Representatives to co-sponsor HR 760, or thank them for signing it.
Anti-hunger advocates and Challenge participants thank D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton her support of the SNAP/Food Stamp Program and for signing onto H.R 760. Photo L-R:
- Lauren Stillwell, Washington Area Women's Foundation
- Alex Ashbrook, DC Hunger Solutions
- Antonio Madison, Capital Area Asset Builders/DC EITC Campaign
- Congresswoman Norton
- Barfonce Baldwin, Capitol Hill Group Ministry
- Amanda Melara, Capital Area Food Bank
- Jeanina Perez, Community Family Life Services
- Jenna Jones, SOME (So Others Might Eat) Senior Center
- Jessica Luna, DC Hunger Solutions
Read the Food Stamp Challenge Diary...
The Food Stamp Challenge gives participants a view of what life can be like for millions of low-income Americans. Challenge participants use the average Food Stamp Program benefit - just $30 per person - as their budget for food for one week. They are forced to make difficult food shopping choices, and often realize how hard it is to avoid hunger, afford nutritious food, and stay healthy. While living on a food stamp budget for just a week cannot come close to the struggles encountered by low-income families week after week and month after month, it does provide those who take the Challenge with a new perspective and greater understanding.
Are you currently receiving SNAP/Food Stamps, or have in the past? Follow this link to share your story.
One out of every eight District residents faces a constant struggle against hunger. This situation is not acceptable in the capital of the world’s richest country—and what’s worse, current threats to the Food Stamp Program (now known as SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) could mean even more hunger in the District in the years to come.
Key partners in our Challenge:
- Bread for the City
- Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington
- Capital Area Asset Builders
- Defeat Poverty DC
- DC Greens
- Fair Budget Coalition
- Washington Area Women's Foundation
- City leaders taking the Challenge:
Ariana Quinones-Miranda, Office of the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services
David Berns, Director, D.C. Department of Human Services
John Thompson, Executive Director, D.C. Office on Aging
Mary Cheh, D.C. Councilmember, Ward 3
In 2007, D.C. Hunger Solutions partnered with Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, then Council-Chairman Vincent Gray, Bread for the City, Washington Area Women’s Foundation and others for our first Food Stamp Challenge. Follow this link to read Washington Post coverage of the Challenge.
For questions regarding the Food Stamp Challenge, contact Jessica Luna at jluna@dchunger.org.
