Community voices: Why Nutrition Assistance Matters

Floor Speech

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Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I recently had the pleasure of speaking
with a group of people involved with Community Voices: Why Nutrition
Assistance Matters. It was inspiring to hear about the real and
positive impacts our Federal nutrition programs have in the daily lives
of Americans all across this country.

Community Voices is a summer-long national campaign launched by the
Center for American Progress, the Coalition on Human Needs, Witnesses
to Hunger, the Food Research and Action Center, Feeding America, and
the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

It was started to share the personal stories of individuals and
service providers who experienced firsthand programs like SNAP or WIC
or school meals. These contributors are the real experts when it comes
to the importance and effect of our vital nutrition assistance
programs.

The Community Voices campaign culminated in this booklet, a
compilation of many of these personal stories. I would like to take a
moment and share a few of these stories.
Jonetta, from Sacramento, California, says:
``Several years ago, I left an abusive relationship, and now I am
raising my daughter by myself. My daughter participates in the school
meal program and the after-school snack program. The snack program
really helps so that my daughter isn't as hungry when she gets home
from school.

``We also receive $356 a month in SNAP. This money is supposed to
supplement my food budget, but it is really all of my food budget
because my income barely covers my rent. Right now, I'm homeless, and
it is hard to find a place to live for less than $500 a month.

``Because of SNAP, we are not starving. As a mom, I try to cut out a
lot of bad food from my family's diet, but it is a difficult task to
buy the healthier food because it is expensive. It's also very
difficult because we have been homeless for a couple of months, so I
have to use other people's refrigerators.

``I am very thankful for these programs and to all the people who are
trying to make all these programs better. They really helped me and my
daughter.''

Let me share another story from Linda from the Massachusetts
Coalition of the Homeless:
``Several years ago, I volunteered at a summer program at a park in
Morgantown, Kentucky, assisting with skill-building activities. Without
this nutrition program, the kids who came would not have had lunch,
since school was not in session. If the kids didn't come to that park
for nutritional food, I'm not sure they would have gotten it anywhere
else. None of the food was wasted; and if there was any food left over,
the kids would take it back to their families.

``Food is a basic human right, and our government sometimes forgets
that and needs to be reminded. This is a moral imperative for our
country to make sure that all people, especially children, have the
resources needed to develop--even more so for families and children in
poverty.''

I want to thank Jonetta, Linda, and all of those who took the time to
share their stories. They remind us that these programs are helping
real families who are trying to do their best in very difficult times.
Mr. Speaker, all too often the discussion around SNAP and our other
antihunger programs is punctuated by misinformation, false stereotypes,
or downright nasty rhetoric. It is frustrating, and it is wrong.

Community Voices reminds us what a positive difference these programs
make for families who are really struggling.

The data backs up just how important these programs are. In 2014
alone, for example, SNAP lifted 4.7 million people out of poverty,
including 2.1 million children. Ninety-two percent of benefits go to
households with incomes below the poverty line, which includes millions
of struggling families working hard every day to put food on the table.
Federal investment in our nutrition programs is one of the smartest
investments we can make. For example, for every $1 spent on preventive
services for a pregnant woman in WIC, the program saves $4.21 in
Medicaid costs by reducing the risk of preterm birth and associated
costs.

Mr. Speaker, I have long believed that we need to hear firsthand from
the people who are directly touched by SNAP, WIC, or school meals. They
are the real experts, and they can guide us, as Members of Congress, as
we work to strengthen and improve these programs.

Every Member of Congress should have received a Community Voices
booklet. It is a call to action to protect our vital nutrition
assistance programs. I encourage you to read the stories about how
these programs are helping families who need them most. Without them,
hunger would be much, much worse in this country.

I urge you to keep their stories in mind the next time proposals come
before Congress to cut funding for WIC or restrict access to SNAP or
make it more difficult for kids to get healthy meals in school. Harmful
changes like these would hurt real families who are already struggling.
We should not make their lives more difficult. We should not be making
hunger worse in this country. Mr. Speaker, we can and we should do more
to end hunger now.

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