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There's No Shortage of People Who Need Help This Thanksgiving

1 year ago
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Joann M. Weiner
Joann M. Weiner
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As Americans prepare to sit down for their Thanksgiving meal, plenty of them will wonder what they have to be thankful for.
America is one of the richest countries in the world, and that's something to take pride in. But could any American be anything but ashamed that one out of seven Americans lives in poverty, or 44 million citizens are hungry at one time or another every year, or that the number of food stamp users rose to 41.8 million in July, marking the 20th straight month of record participation?
One out of four unemployed workers is now officially classified as "long-term unemployed" and eligible for 99 weeks of benefits (the House just voted against extending these benefits for another three months); those 99 weeks are more than three times as long as unemployment benefits normally last. More than 1.2 million workers have become so discouraged about the job market that they have stopped even looking. These figures mock the official unemployment rate of just 9.6 percent, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. If we count underemployed and discouraged workers, the unofficial unemployment rate soars above 17 percent.
That said, the employment situation seems to be improving, as the economy generated 150,000 jobs last month. But that good news only goes so far, considering that the economic condition of many American families remains dismal.
Here are the facts. The typical American household not only earns less than it did before the recession began in 2007, but, incredibly, that household earns even less than it did in 1999. That's a decade of going nowhere. No wonder we didn't cheer when the economists announced that the recession has ended -- 15 million unemployed workers, 8.4 million jobs lost in 2009, 45 million people living in poverty, and 10 years of economic stagnation hardly merit a Hip, hip hurrah.
What's worse is that the economic recession is hitting where it hurts the most. To paraphrase the movie, the kids are not all right. Almost half of the families that experience homelessness have kids under age 5. Poverty rates of 20 percent or more among the young are at levels not seen since LBJ launched the War on Poverty, and 1.3 million more kids lived in poverty last year than the year before.
To give you an idea of what poverty means, consider that a family of four lives in poverty if it makes $22,050 a year. So if mom stays at home with the kids and dad works full time to earn about $1,800 a month, his pay has to cover food, clothing, shelter, school, health care, entertainment, and more.
With just $1,800 a month to spend, where do these families cut back? Some 50 million Americans decide that health care is a luxury they can't afford. Families that are not covered through the workplace may decide against spending more than one-fourth of their income (the typical price for a family to purchase insurance coverage is nearly $6,000) obtaining health insurance. Then, they hope that no one gets sick.
Some might argue that the poverty rate gives a distorted picture of a person's true status because it only considers cash income and excludes non-cash programs like Medicaid and food stamps. So, let's consider some of the government benefits that an impoverished family of four might receive.
To get an idea of this support, I decided to check out Benefits.gov, the official benefits website for the U.S. government. I described myself as a family of four earning $50,000 (the median income in America), married, and living in a private residence. I indicated that I was looking for income/food assistance and, since many of these benefits come through the tax code, I was also interested in tax assistance.
Benefits.gov showed that I was potentially eligible for 23 programs -- including 11 food and nutrition, four child care, three education and training, and 12 tax assistance programs, which turned out to be a huge bonanza. Not only does the site suggest programs offered by the IRS on how to file tax returns, but it also points out organizations that can help low-income taxpayers claim benefits, such as the credit for dependent and child care, medical and dental expenses, the education tax credit, the earned income tax credit (EITC), and more.
Yet, even with all this, government support regularly falls woefully short. What's a family to do if it has no food to put on the table tonight?
Here's where private citizens step in. America is overflowing with philanthropists and local organizations that are so critical in helping people in need. In Washington, D.C., groups like So Others Might Eat, Food and Friends, and Martha's Table help the poor and homeless make it through the day. Martha's Table, for example, opens its pantry on the last Thursday of every month and gives food away to anyone who needs it.
Most communities have programs that rely heavily on private donations and local volunteers, and organizations around the nation and around the world provide ways to help. For example, Bread for the World seeks to alleviate global hunger. Women for Women International focuses on helping women lift themselves and their families out of poverty.
Finally, you can earn the right to stuff yourself on Thanksgiving by running or walking in a turkey trot, which you can easily find by typing "turkey trot" into Google. In Washington, you can run a 5k turkey trot on behalf of So Others Might Eat (SOME) and, if you continue volunteering throughout the year, you might just find yourself next to one of Washington's most famous residents.
Regardless of how you choose to help, this Thanksgiving is a great time to make a contribution or strap on an apron and serve a bountiful meal to those who remain hungry. For that, we can truly give thanks.
Filed Under: Woman Up, Unemployment, Economy
Tagged: food pantries, food pantry, government benefits, homeless, poverty, poverty rate, recession, thanksgiving, thanksgiving dinner, unemployment, unemployment rate
More articles from Joann M. Weiner »

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8 Comments

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dragonemisis

Small "s" senator Scott Brown can't take the heat. He blocks all people on his Facebook page who criticise his blocking of the extension of Unemployment. These people are unemployed BECAUSE of failed Republican policies of the last decade. Man up Scott Brown!

December 01 2010 at 12:43 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dragonemisis

In spite of the massive failure of their policies in the last decade, Republican still want to give it all to the top 2% & hang America out to dry! When the middle class is strong, big business booms. And their stance as fiscal conservatives? 85% of the national debt was run up under Republican presidents until the bailout. Now its 75%. Go to senator Scott Brown's Fb page & tell him what you think about his blocking the extension of Unemployment benefits to people out of work because of failed Republican policies. Many children will STARVE this winter because of this pathetic error in judgement on Brown's part.

December 01 2010 at 12:34 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
ettu

Yes, it is shameful, and we can thank all those "brilliant" Harvard grads, and lawyers who have absolutly no understanding of profit and loss, except for their own ledgers. When the Harvard lawyers are writing the laws that burden the people but exempt themselves, and they have all the information on who their laws are going to favor so they know where to invest their own money, it isn't a show of brilliance on their part, it is simply a light shone on their ability to scam the people. Time to get the brilliant lawyers out, and get the ordinary business minded people in, those who are interested in growing our country, and preserving liberty, strength, and prosperity, for the future generations.

November 24 2010 at 11:33 AM Report abuse +6 rate up rate down Reply
ttdq

It is true, there are people out there that have lost their jobs and need help. However, there are more that don't work, have never really worked, and never intend to work. They are the ones waiting on Income Redistribution and feel that the administration is going too slow and needs to hurry up. They just can't get other peoples money fast enough.

November 24 2010 at 8:42 AM Report abuse +7 rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to ttdq's comment
Blessings!

ttdq: I cannot believe that there are even people still buying in to that nonsense! President or not, Obama cannot force the rich to hand over their money to less financially fortunate, and I see absolutely no way it'd get past Congress to even get to Obama in the first place! How he could have made such a "promise" is truly beyond me! If indeed there are people waiting for that thing, they can't be thinking in their right minds. IMO, it was a ploy to get the poor vote that worked. I can't imagine that to be feasible at all, and I said that at the time it was promised. People need to take the jobs out there, work hard, and do the best that they can from there. Before I became disabled, I worked my share of 'piddley' jobs to survive and though it's no picnic, you need to provide for your family and stop depending on the system. Many who really need the help are rejected while 'Career Welfarians' are still living on welfare and other services generation after generation. (I know there is no such word as welfarians - just made it up but you get the picture.)

November 24 2010 at 10:31 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dragonemisis

ttdq, Do some research! You can't get unemployment UNLESS you pay in! These people are out of work BECAUSE of failed Republican policies of the last decade. Many American children will starve this winter while Republicans allocate funds to foreign powers and give more useless tax breaks to the top 2%.

December 01 2010 at 12:39 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
ricardoeddy@usa.com

You guys should stop complaining because, one the health care we have now isnt as good as it was supposed to be. also the law has just been signed so give it some time. so if u want to say u have the right to choose tell that to ur congress men or state official. If you do not have insurance and need one You can find full medical coverage at the lowest price check http://ow.ly/3akSX .If you have health insurance and do not care about cost just be happy about it and trust me you are not going to loose anything!

November 24 2010 at 1:26 AM Report abuse -8 rate up rate down Reply

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