PENNSYLVANIA PARTNERSHIPS FOR CHILDREN, WWW.PAPARTNERSHIPS.ORG.
Thanks to Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Coalition on Human Needs, Center for Community Change and PA Partnerships for Children for help with this article. (loyd, the thanks is part of the article)
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by Mary Elizabeth McCarthy
Across the country, and particularly in the hallowed halls of Congress, a debate is occurring. At the heart of it
lies a discussion with philosophical underpinnings which can be traced back to the foundation of our country. There is
the Rugged Individualism vs. an Agreement to Band Together. This began in 1620 when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock.
Facing a hostile environment the Pilgrims saw themselves as each man for himself. Yet, they adopted the Mayflower Compact
which set rules of law designed to band the Pilgrims together, not only legally but also socially.
Fast forward to the years from 1932-1945. The Great Depression, FDR was elected, the law known as Social Security passed
in 1936 to lift the elderly out of poverty, providing for widows and orphans, and World War II occurred. In the space of 12
short years Americans came together as never before. There was a collective spirit that lifted America to the decades of
unprecedented prosperity, which permitted the disabled to be covered under Social Security in 1956 through the leadership
of Sen. Lyndon B. Johnson.
But now Rugged Individualism is reemerging. Details, though not all, have been surfacing since President Bush's State
of the Union speech on Jan.27, 2005. Privatization has been touted as saving Social Security from certain bankruptcy in
2042. Never mind that most respected economists of both parties dismiss this as distorted rhetoric. The debate is being
couched in a divisive appeal to certain groups. There seems to be a generational component to this debate, as well as a
racial one. Young people are being told that by the time they reach retirement age the system will be "flat broke."
Grandparents, as well as parents, are being taken on perhaps the greatest guilt trip of all. And the young are asked to
imagine "their golden years" laced with dire poverty, if these personal accounts are not enacted.
President Bush met with African-American leaders in late January. The President related that statistics show that
blacks die younger than white Americans. Therefore, their surviving widows and dependent children will inherit
their personal accounts, presumably benefiting their wallets. .How this will occur is not spelled out. And many do not
know that the SS benefits that will accompany their savings will not be configured on the years people work, but on
the inflation rate. But the question of why the disparity of mortality between black and white Americans is not addressed.
Many are saying that this plan will not be adopted. But one only has to look at the Medicare Prescription Bill enacted
in Nov of 2003. It was conceived behind closed doors by the Republican leadership and debated briefly. The vote was left
open 3 hours longer than normal. It passed rapidly without time to digest its entirety, overlooking the rising prices of
prescriptions - thus hurting seniors.
Sen. Rick Santorum faced angry citizens in Pittsburgh at the first of his round of community meetings in January.
Proponents seem to be facing increasing opposition to this plan.
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Food bankers and food program managers reacted sharply to the Rendell Administration’s plan to cut $2.4 million from the
State’s emergency food program. The cut – if adopted by the General Assembly – would reduce the state-funded food supply
by over 14 %!
“This would mean a cut of $205,273 from our Pittsburgh Food Bank—nearly a month’s worth of food,” said Joyce Rothermel,
Executive Director of the Food Bank.
Many people think that food banks are completely privately funded, but actually a good deal of their funding come
from government tax monies.
During the current fiscal year, the State Food Purchase Program – created when the mills shut down in the 80’s --provides
$17.4 million to buy quality food to supplement other inventories collected by pantries and cupboards through community
food drives and business donations. Under the Governor’s proposal, funding would be slashed to $15 million next year
despite the fact that the number of households in need is up across the state.
Rendell also plans to cut back on many of the Medicaid services low-income people enjoy, although he expects new people
to join the rolls and proposes increasing funding. Medical expense is the single largest influence driving up the state’s
costs.
In addition, the welfare reserves in the state have been depleted and a number of non-welfare funded programs,
like child welfare, are slated to take major hits.
Of course, levying taxes on the wealthy or on non-taxed corporations is off the table.
As long as the federal government continues to cut back on grants to the states, and officials at the state and
federal levels avoid revamping the revenue side of their operations (taxes) and their spending priorities, poor people
will continue to suffer.
The Governor’s Inter-Agency Council on Food and Nutrition, which Gov. Casey established in 1988 and Gov. Ridge disbanded
in 1994, is set to re-convene soon.
This represents a great victory for advocacy organizations like Pennsylvania Hunger Action and Just Harvest, who asked
Governor Rendell to revive the Council. The Departments of Agriculture, Welfare, Education, Health, Aging and Community and
Economic Development are members.
The council will work to alleviate hunger and poverty and to design and implement plans for improving Pennsylvanians’
nutritional status. Rendell’s office has asked the Department of Agriculture chair the council and provide staff service.
Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff will act as Secretary. Rendell has included funding for the council in his proposed
budget.
Pennsylvania Hunger Action Center staffer Sue Mitchem is traveling the entire state meeting with people in rural
communities about offering the Summer Food Program. The program resulted from intensive advocacy the Center did with
Congressman Platts and Senators Specter and Santorum. Twenty-five hundred more children will have access to summer
meals through this one-of- a-kind pilot program that could bring us up to $75,000 in new federal funding.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has been selected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
as the only pilot program in the nation aimed at increasing rural participation in the Summer Food Service Program, which
provides meals for children from low-income families during the summer months. PDE estimates that 101 new school districts
will now qualify.
Regions of 21 rural counties are eligible for the pilot and any school district, non-profit and/or government
organization in these counties may apply to participate in the Summer Food Service Program. For more information call
1-800-331-0129.
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NEWS BRIEFS
A study by Mark R. Rank and Thomas A. Hirschl shows that 51% of Americans between age 20 and 65 years old—4 out of ten
Americans -- will participate in the Food Stamp Program at some point in their life. The study measures food stamp
participation in the US and shows that the need for food stamps is not something that happens to “someone else.” In fact,
two thirds of Americans will experience at least one year of poverty and at least half of the American population will need
to use food stamps to get by. The study's results appeared in the December 2004 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education
and Behavior.
Advocates across the state conducting outreach for the Food Stamp Program have much to celebrate! (Or should we cry?)
In December 2004 the total number of people receiving food stamps in Pennsylvania rose to 1,007,439, up from 996,684 in
November. In January the number rose to 1,021,501 – an increase of 14,000 in just one month and the highest number in more
than seven years! This marks the first time since 1997 (welfare reform) that more than one million Pennsylvanians were on
food stamps. In fact, the number of Pennsylvanians participating in the program increased more than 20% over the last four
years, reversing the drastic decline in participation in the program which had resulted from misunderstood welfare reform
rules.
Monsanto, manufacturer and distributor of agricultural chemicals and developer of plant biotechnology has purchased
Seminis, the largest fruit and vegetable producer in the world.
Monsanto and Dupont already control about 60% of the domestic market for corn and soybean. Now Monsanto plans to
acquire the company and breed the seeds conventionally. No biotech yet, they say. Despite this, it is doubtful Monsanto
is retreating from the biotech frontier.
What this means is you and I, not to mention the farmer, will have less choice over what we eat and grow as Monsanto’s
grip on the seed supply tightens. And, if the labeling issue in the US is any indication, we will be less informed as a
result. There can be no freer consumer choice when one company controls so much of the seed, and, by extension, when so
few companies own so much.
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Pennsylvania lost three leaders in the war on hunger and poverty in the first months of 2005. William Schofield III,
John McClay II and Louise Brookins touched the lives of many of the state’s poor and we mourn their passing.
Bill Schofield died on January 24 t the age of 78. He served in the Navy during World War II and the Korean War and
retired a group commander for reserve activities in 1972. In addition to his career as an insurance executive, Schofield
also served as Veterans’ Affairs Director for Allegheny County, where he was a strong advocate for homeless vets. He met
regularly with representatives from other county agencies and was an outspoken agent for change in local planning on hunger
and poverty issues.
John McClay II, 71, passed away on January 30. McClay was Chief Executive Officer of McClay, Inc, a food sales and
marketing firm that he and his father co-founded. He cared deeply about the less fortunate, as demonstrated by his
dedication to the United Way of Allegheny County and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank; he served on the boards
of both organizations for many years. He chaired Mayor Masloff’s Food Policy Commission in the '90's, which was initiated
by Just Harvest.
Louise Brookins, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Welfare Rights Organization for over 30 years, died on Saturday,
February 6 at the age of 80. Brookins began caring for the poor in 1968 when she trained with Volunteers In Service To
America (VISTA) in Washington. Later, she founded Philadelphia’s first VISTA office. Then, in 1972 she was appointed to
the position she held until the time of her passing. Brookins was an outspoken advocate all her life.
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Advocates nationwide pushed to get media promotion of the Food Stamp Program as part of the federal outreach campaign.
Initially, the Food & Nutrition Service of the USDA producing the campaign did not select Allegheny County for their 2005
radio campaign. However, thanks to Mike Mullen of Congressman Mike Doyle’s office, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food
Bank, and Just Harvest, Allegheny County has been added to the campaign. The radio ads will occur in April and May, and
again in the summer. A local committee of community people will work to ensure that FNS will publicize the correct
information to the right people.
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School districts all over the country are struggling to provide attractive, nutritious foods that are reimbursable by
the federal government. In some districts “a la carte” items (not reimbursable for nutrition reasons) represent upwards of
about 43 %of total school food sales.
According to PANA (Pennsylvania Advocates for Nutrition and Activity) 35% of Pennsylvania’s children (higher than the national average of 30%) are overweight or at risk for becoming overweight although studies show no evidence that school meals participation contributes to obesity. New federal law requires that by 2006 all schools receiving federal money for meal programs must form “student health councils” to improve health and nutrition in their district. And new Pennsylvania law, starting next school year, requires that all Pennsylvania schools must measure students’ body-fat percentages and report them to parents.
So how do you get students to choose healthier foods?
Schools have become very creative in the ways they market healthy foods to our children. Center Area High School (Pennsylvania) held a Healthy Food Fair where children could try healthier foods for main courses, snacks, drinks and desserts that have more nutritional value than most a la carte items sold in schools. Children voted on their favorites, which will be implemented into the district’s menu which will also publish nutritional breakdowns.
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