So much for helping mothers...

[resolution]

So the numbers are in, and 15 states have rejected federal summer lunch assistance for children. I am not surprised, but I am discouraged by this. I am still waiting to see all the new programs they were going to add to assist mothers when they outlawed abortion. 

wapo.st/41Qmrfu

The article is a gift link, so anyone can read it without a subscription and without it counting against the free article limit.

The U.S. Agriculture Department said Wednesday that 35 states, five U.S. territories and four Native American tribes indicated by the Jan. 1 deadline that they would be participating in the summer food assistance program. It will provide families with incomes below the poverty level who already get school lunches for a reduced price or free with $120 per child to buy food at grocery stores, farmers markets or other approved retailers. The USDA called it “a giant step forward” in meeting the needs of the country’s families in the summer months, when food assistance in schools is not available.

Those who work with families in states where the food money has been turned down said the impact will be devastating and add pressure to private food banks. Hunger in the United States is on the rise as pandemic aid programs have wound down and food costs have skyrocketed. In 2022, food insecurity rates increased sharply, with 17.3 percent of households with children lacking enough food, up from 12.5 percent in 2021, according to the USDA.

[scgal]

Is it money that is being handed out or a voucher for food. The way I read it was it was money, which I am against. A food voucher I'm in favor for

[resolution]

Jan 10, 2024 15:40:39 GMT -5 scgal said:

Is it money that is being handed out or a voucher for food. The way I read it was it was money, which I am against. A food voucher I'm in favor for

It is issued as a balance on their EBT card from the SNAP program, and is restricted to the same grocery items that SNAP benefits (Food Stamps) are allowed to purchase.

[giramomma]

The sad truth is we like to say we think folks should have the basics, but no one believes it. Access to food, shelter, medical care. It's a privilege not a right.  I don't think it will change in my lifetime. Maybe the missy's.

The choice to highlight the family with the SAHP and a plumber is a poor choice. Google tells me that the lowest quartile of plumbers in Oklahoma city make 53K a year. For a family of four, that is not below poverty level income. Now, if mom was staying at home because she was disabled, that would have been a better story...If she can plant a garden, I'm assuming she could perhaps consider a sedentary job. And it's too bad that doing things like planting a garden is now relegated to something poor folk do.

[haapai]

It sounds a heck of a lot like an increased SNAP benefit, not a deposit into a bank account.  There are restrictions on where it can be used and what it can be used to pay for that sound exactly like the restrictions on what SNAP can be used for. 

Personally, I'd much rather see the parents of kids who qualify for free or reduced price school lunches (and sometimes breakfasts) be able to get something like an increased SNAP benefit during the summer break than be offered a bag of expensively prepared fresh food or outrageously over-packaged food that they need to pick up at a certain time and place.  Having good transportation and qualifying for free lunches don't really happen at the same time. 

[busymom]

All lives matter to the Republican Party, until you have to feed them, educate them, and actually take care of them.  

[jerseygirl]

Adding this to existing SNAP programs seems the most efficient and helpful. No need to waste money setting up a new program, criteria etc
Very sad that some states refused

[dannylion]

Oh, please.  There was never any intention to add programs to assist the targets of forced breeding.  Or children who are not the product of the "right" families.  They're not even pretending to be compassionate anymore; their hero has given them permission to practice the politics of cruelty openly.  The cruelty is the point.  

[ners]

We have a charity called End 68 Hours of Hunger.  They send children to home with a backpack of food to feed them for the period from lunch on Friday until Breakfast on Monday.  Once a month they will send food for a meal for the family.  

[busymom]

Jan 10, 2024 21:13:23 GMT -5 ners said:

We have a charity called End 68 Hours of Hunger.  They send children to home with a backpack of food to feed them for the period from lunch on Friday until Breakfast on Monday.  Once a month they will send food for a meal for the family.  

    There is a similar program in our school district.  Enough food is sent home to get the kids through the weekend, including snacks.  As I've mentioned before, our community has all types of housing:  everything from trailer parks to golf course communities.  The part I loved about having kids in school was it gave them the opportunity to make friends with students of all income levels.  Nothing like a dose of reality to help you understand how the real world works.  I never wanted my kids to grow up in an area with only upper class people.   

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

I'm not taking a side here. I just wanted to share what happened where I lived. 

A few years ago, the state in which I live did this--debit cards for June, July, and August to replace the breakfasts and lunches that schools provide for free. I lived in an extremely rural area at the time. The plan was that the department of the state government that distributes funds for food would receive the mailing addresses of people with children under the age of 18 from the public school districts. The intent was that everyone got the cards not just those who signed up for WIC or EBT. The school districts in which I and DH worked and the surrounding school districts all just signed up for the program. It seemed like an easy yes. However,  many of the parents who were not on any type of social services were really upset when the debit cards arrived in the mail. They didn't want assistance from the government. They didn't want the school district to share their information with the state government. The following year, most of the surrounding districts changed their procedure to the families having to sign a release for the school district to confirm with the state that the family wanted the debit cards. 

[scgal]

They had a summer program here (I think it we still have it) where all the kids who went to school in the summer were fed regardless if the parents signed up. Good program except the schools were had too much food. I was a persons house and I saw all the little cartons of milk I asked where did they come from (she is a teacher) she said since the school had so much extra the school staff took it home when I asked why not give it to the families she said it was against the law. These people are in my income class. I asked ok why not take it and donate it to families in need I could give her a list she looked at me like I had 2 heads. 

[giramomma]

Jan 11, 2024 9:06:51 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

I'm not taking a side here. I just wanted to share what happened where I lived. 

A few years ago, the state in which I live did this--debit cards for June, July, and August to replace the breakfasts and lunches that schools provide for free. I lived in an extremely rural area at the time. The plan was that the department of the state government that distributes funds for food would receive the mailing addresses of people with children under the age of 18 from the public school districts. The intent was that everyone got the cards not just those who signed up for WIC or EBT. The school districts in which I and DH worked and the surrounding school districts all just signed up for the program. It seemed like an easy yes. However,  many of the parents who were not on any type of social services were really upset when the debit cards arrived in the mail. They didn't want assistance from the government. They didn't want the school district to share their information with the state government. The following year, most of the surrounding districts changed their procedure to the families having to sign a release for the school district to confirm with the state that the family wanted the debit cards. 

That's interesting. Do you know how these folks responded to as my son put it "the Biden Bucks?" Were they upset about the  money they got during Covid and maybe even try to donate the money or otherwise give it away?

Rural folks are the most "raise yourself by your bootstraps" folks I know. And, yes, gov't assistance was looked down upon. I was raised on the notion, that receiving gov't social safety nets is one of the worst things that you could do. (Only topped, by teenaged pregnancy).

I probably would pause, too, if we got debit cards. I also don't know that I would have the bandwidth to make a huge ruckous over it either.

Sometimes, I think people are just not busy enough to be that upset about something that they could just shrug their shoulders and move along about.

ETA: Even my mom who spouts out how awful gov't is, was upset that she didn't get all the biden bucks she thought she should. My mom nets just about as much as we do a month, and she has a paid off house. So surely, she should not be crying poverty.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Jan 11, 2024 10:28:21 GMT -5 giramomma said:

Jan 11, 2024 9:06:51 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

I'm not taking a side here. I just wanted to share what happened where I lived. 

A few years ago, the state in which I live did this--debit cards for June, July, and August to replace the breakfasts and lunches that schools provide for free. I lived in an extremely rural area at the time. The plan was that the department of the state government that distributes funds for food would receive the mailing addresses of people with children under the age of 18 from the public school districts. The intent was that everyone got the cards not just those who signed up for WIC or EBT. The school districts in which I and DH worked and the surrounding school districts all just signed up for the program. It seemed like an easy yes. However,  many of the parents who were not on any type of social services were really upset when the debit cards arrived in the mail. They didn't want assistance from the government. They didn't want the school district to share their information with the state government. The following year, most of the surrounding districts changed their procedure to the families having to sign a release for the school district to confirm with the state that the family wanted the debit cards. 

That's interesting. Do you know how these folks responded to as my son put it "the Biden Bucks?" Were they upset about the  money they got during Covid and maybe even try to donate the money or otherwise give it away?

Rural folks are the most "raise yourself by your bootstraps" folks I know. And, yes, gov't assistance was looked down upon. I was raised on the notion, that receiving gov't social safety nets is one of the worst things that you could do. (Only topped, by teenaged pregnancy).

I probably would pause, too, if we got debit cards. I also don't know that I would have the bandwidth to make a huge ruckous over it either.

Sometimes, I think people are just not busy enough to be that upset about something that they could just shrug their shoulders and move along about.

ETA: Even my mom who spouts out how awful gov't is, was upset that she didn't get all the biden bucks she thought she should. My mom nets just about as much as we do a month, and she has a paid off house. So surely, she should not be crying poverty.

It’s funny, but I saw something like this in 2019/10/11 when I did my practicum for my PhD on the dental van.  We were offering FREE dental care to children, and only about 10% took advantage of it.  

This was a service that was sponsored by the state university and a bunch of different private companies (McDonalds, Delta Dental, P&G, Unilever and a few more I’m not remembering) to improve dental health in children…..and we went through the schools because (at least at the time) dental pain was the #1.cause of missed school.  

This wasn’t about sharing info, because the ONLY requirement we had was a signed consent form.  I don’t know if they ever teased out the reason why there was such poor participation.  I do know there was a lo5 of discussion about how to increase participation, and many things were done.  

[Opti]

Jan 11, 2024 10:28:21 GMT -5 giramomma said:

Jan 11, 2024 9:06:51 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

I'm not taking a side here. I just wanted to share what happened where I lived. 

A few years ago, the state in which I live did this--debit cards for June, July, and August to replace the breakfasts and lunches that schools provide for free. I lived in an extremely rural area at the time. The plan was that the department of the state government that distributes funds for food would receive the mailing addresses of people with children under the age of 18 from the public school districts. The intent was that everyone got the cards not just those who signed up for WIC or EBT. The school districts in which I and DH worked and the surrounding school districts all just signed up for the program. It seemed like an easy yes. However,  many of the parents who were not on any type of social services were really upset when the debit cards arrived in the mail. They didn't want assistance from the government. They didn't want the school district to share their information with the state government. The following year, most of the surrounding districts changed their procedure to the families having to sign a release for the school district to confirm with the state that the family wanted the debit cards. 

That's interesting. Do you know how these folks responded to as my son put it "the Biden Bucks?" Were they upset about the  money they got during Covid and maybe even try to donate the money or otherwise give it away?

Rural folks are the most "raise yourself by your bootstraps" folks I know. And, yes, gov't assistance was looked down upon. I was raised on the notion, that receiving gov't social safety nets is one of the worst things that you could do. (Only topped, by teenaged pregnancy).

I probably would pause, too, if we got debit cards. I also don't know that I would have the bandwidth to make a huge ruckous over it either.

Sometimes, I think people are just not busy enough to be that upset about something that they could just shrug their shoulders and move along about.

ETA: Even my mom who spouts out how awful gov't is, was upset that she didn't get all the biden bucks she thought she should. My mom nets just about as much as we do a month, and she has a paid off house. So surely, she should not be crying poverty.

How did they feel about the Trump handouts to the masses when he did the tax cuts. That happened on his watch before he left office. I have received nothing because I was too stressed to file my taxes and wasn't sure I would live through the pandemic. Now I just have to survive all the conservatives. 

[Tennesseer]

Mississippi quits child food program amid Republican ‘welfare state’ attack

Mississippi is withdrawing from a federal program to feed children during their summer break from school, the governor there announced, characterizing the decision as a way to reject “attempts to expand the welfare state”.

Governor Tate Reeves, a Republican, declined to participate in the federal program that would give electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards to low-income families to supplement food costs when academic classes are out of session, Mississippi Today reported.

Eligible families would have received $40 a month, or a total of $120 to account for the break between school terms.

However, Mississippi’s welfare agency undercut Reeves’s reasoning, saying the state does not have the capacity to administer the program.
Related: Malaria drug Trump touted as Covid cure increased chance of death – study

“Both [the Mississippi department of education] and [its department of human services] lack the resources, including workforce capacity and funding, to support a summer EBT program,” a spokesperson for the state human services department, Mark Jones, said.

Reeves’s latest comments ignited fierce backlash.

Nikole Hannah-Jones, a scholar and creator of the 1619 Project, criticized Reeves’s decision as “cruelty”.

“The cruelty of being the poorest state in America and choosing – choosing – to turn down federal aid for poor children to eat,” Hannah-Jones said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Rest of article here: Mississippi quits child food program amid Republican ‘welfare state’ attack

[dannylion]

Jan 13, 2024 10:58:10 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Mississippi quits child food program amid Republican ‘welfare state’ attack

And we can be virtually guaranteed that every single one of those Mississippi Republicans who are congratulating themselves for rejecting the "welfare state" and probably also claiming to be "defeating woke" consider themselves good Christians for doing so.  

[Tennesseer]

Jan 13, 2024 11:22:53 GMT -5 dannylion said:

Jan 13, 2024 10:58:10 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Mississippi quits child food program amid Republican ‘welfare state’ attack

And we can be virtually guaranteed that every single one of those Mississippi Republicans who are congratulating themselves for rejecting the "welfare state" and probably also claiming to be "defeating woke" consider themselves good Christians for doing so.  

Of course. After all, it is Mississippi.

[resolution]

Jan 11, 2024 16:05:51 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

It’s funny, but I saw something like this in 2019/10/11 when I did my practicum for my PhD on the dental van.  We were offering FREE dental care to children, and only about 10% took advantage of it.  

This was a service that was sponsored by the state university and a bunch of different private companies (McDonalds, Delta Dental, P&G, Unilever and a few more I’m not remembering) to improve dental health in children…..and we went through the schools because (at least at the time) dental pain was the #1.cause of missed school.  

This wasn’t about sharing info, because the ONLY requirement we had was a signed consent form.  I don’t know if they ever teased out the reason why there was such poor participation.  I do know there was a lo5 of discussion about how to increase participation, and many things were done.  

We had a similar issue back in the 1990s working with juvenile detention centers. We had identified a problem where the kids would receive mental health treatment while they were in juvenile detention, but as soon as they were released they would lose their health coverage and no longer be able to obtain their medication. Then they would act out and end up back in juvenile detention.

So we had this project where we would send Medicaid workers to the juvenile detention centers when the parents were supposed to be there, and have them sign applications before the kid's release to keep them on their medication without a break in coverage. But we couldn't get the parents to show up or sign anything. In the end the project was cancelled due to lack of participation. 

That's part of what was nice about this summer EBT program. It is automated, so the schools send a list of kids on free lunches, and the automated system adds the benefit to their EBT card for the summer. No one really has to do much of anything, other than the programmers running the automated job.

[Mardi Gras Audrey]

This is so sad. How can anyone vote for people with this kind of thinking? Food for children should be a bare minimum we can all agree to do… especially when we are talking $40 per month… that isn’t steak and lobster money… that is a pb&j or Mac and cheese money,

Totally pathetic. I pay a lot in taxes (about $40k a year federally) and would be willing to pay more to make sure kids aren’t hungry over the summer.

I especially loved the Iowa gov talking about rejecting this because of childhood obesity… yeah, not eating/anorexia solves all your weight problems.I’m sure the starving kids around the world are happy that they “aren’t obese”…SMH

[dannylion]

Jan 15, 2024 19:37:41 GMT -5 Mardi Gras Audrey said:

This is so sad. How can anyone vote for people with this kind of thinking? Food for children should be a bare minimum we can all agree to do… especially when we are talking $40 per month… that isn’t steak and lobster money… that is a pb&j or Mac and cheese money,

Totally pathetic. I pay a lot in taxes (about $40k a year federally) and would be willing to pay more to make sure kids aren’t hungry over the summer.

I especially loved the Iowa gov talking about rejecting this because of childhood obesity… yeah, not eating/anorexia solves all your weight problems.I’m sure the starving kids around the world are happy that they “aren’t obese”…SMH

And you can just picture all those good, compassionate, Christian conservatives congratulating themselves on their cleverness in making the lives of poor children even more difficult, keeping money out of the pockets of the "wrong" people, and finding a way to blame it all on the children they're depriving of access to food.  

[finnime]

I called a man out on this attitude once. He was behind me at the grocery store. The people ahead of me had 3 kids, 1 an infant, and paid with WIC and SNAP. He made a mean remark. I retorted that children need to eat. He was embarrassed, looked down and nodded.