After Decades Of Stigma, Food Stamps Find Acceptance

[theHandpuppet]

A few preceding remarks about this article. First, what does this say about us as a nation when 25% of the people within any county need food assistance? Second, the statistics shatter a lot of misconceptions about those who use food assistance benefits; nearly 75% of those in Scioto County who receive food assistance do not receive any other kind of public assistance, even though 20% of the people within the county are living below the poverty line. (Though I think the guidelines for what our gov't considers the poverty line a total joke. I'd like to see any member of Congress make it on what our gov't considers a minimum "living wage".). A majority of those receiving food assistance ARE holding down jobs - I guess it's a good thing our gov't doesn't consider them among the ranks of the unemployed, even though their wages aren't enough to pay for even basic necessities. These are people who went from working union jobs in steel mills, railroads and factories to shelving Chinese made goods at the local Wally World. Finally, I've provided a link to some Census Bureau demographics of the county, which is situated in Appalachian Ohio on the KY-WV border.
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/39/39145.html

From The Portsmouth (OH) Daily Times
http://www.portsmouth-dailytimes.com/view/full_story/6362771/article-After-Decades-Of-Stigma---Food-Stamps-Find-Acceptance?instance=home_news_lead

After Decades Of Stigma, Food Stamps Find Acceptance
by Majal Perry

The stigma of food stamps is fading as their use soars. With a tough economy, working families are finding it difficult to put food on the table. Food stamp use is at record highs, and climbing. The food assistance program now feeds one in eight Americans and one in four children.

With millions of jobs lost and American industries failing, more than 36 million people are putting the inconspicuous plastic Electronic Benefit Transfer cards (EBT) to use in grocery store check-out lines. The range of people struggling with basic needs include not just the chronically poor, but the newly jobless and workers whose wages or hours have been cut. Many new college graduates are struggling in an empty job market — and finding pantries bare.

<snipping>

Sharon Mundhenk, director for the Scioto County Department of Job and Family Services, said she has seen the stigma lessen significantly.

“I think from my perspective, that it’s been an awareness that someone that receives food assistance benefits (now they’ve changed it from food stamps to food assistance) — that it’s not really what people typically considered a welfare benefit, or a public assistance benefit,” she said. “And the reality is, I’ve got the November 2009 report in front of me, and 74 percent of the individuals that receive food assistance in our county do not receive any type of public assistance. So you know, when you look at that, that’s pretty significant. The majority of these people work everyday or have some kind of a benefit that’s a lower amount and they fit the income guidelines and are eligible to receive food assistance benefits. In November of 2009, there were 18,194 individuals in our county using food assistance and Scioto County has a total of about 77,000 people. So 23.76 percent of the total population of Scioto County receives food stamp benefits. As compared to public assistance, the reality is we only have 3.23 percent on what people consider welfare....

MORE

[nRkiSt]

1. What's good for food stamps is good for JP Morgan

because they run the program now!