Farmworkers pick tomatoes in Immokalee, Florida. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)This is a tough moment in the fight against poverty.
The sequester is the latest chapter in a time-honored tradition of
kicking the poor when they are down. A do-nothing Congress certainly
isn’t going to do something about poverty without pressure from the
grassroots. And it seems that the only way most of the mainstream media
will pay attention to the more than one out of three Americans living
below twice the poverty line—on less than $36,000 for a family of
three—is if their lives make good fodder for tabloid television or play
out in a courtroom drama.
That said, there are still plenty of people and groups fighting for
real change, and plenty of ways you can get involved or stay engaged. I
reached out to a handful of folks who dedicate their lives to fighting
poverty in different ways. Here is what they asked people to do:
1) From Sister Simone Campbell, Sisters of Social Service,
Executive Director of NETWORK: “Support an increase in the minimum wage
to more than $11 per hour.”
What people don’t know is that a large percentage of people living in
poverty are workers who support their families on very small salaries.
In fact,
57 percent of individuals and family members below the official poverty line either worked or lived with a working family member in 2011.
Pope Francis said on May 1, 2013, that all workers should make wages that allow them to live with their families in dignity.
Contact your Senators and Representative to urge them to vote for a minimum wage (one that's more than $11 an hour) and tipped minimum wage that reflect the dignity of
all people.
2) From the Coalition of Immokalee Workers: “Tell Publix:
Help end sexual harassment, wage theft, and forced labor in the
fields—join the Fair Food Program today.”
Until very recently, Florida’s fields were as famous for producing
human rights violations—with countless workers suffering daily
humiliation and abuse ranging from wage theft to sexual harassment and
even forced labor—as they were for growing oranges and tomatoes.
Today, however, there is a
new day dawning for farmworkers in
Florida’s tomato fields. The CIW’s Fair Food Program is demanding a
policy of zero tolerance for human rights abuses on tomato farms, and
it’s working. The program sets the highest human rights standards in the
fields today, including: worker-to-worker education on rights, a
24-hour complaint line and an effective complaint investigation
and resolution process—all backed by market consequences for employers
who refuse to respect their workers’ rights.
The White House recently called the exciting new program
“one of the most successful and innovative programs” in the world today in the fight to uncover—and
prevent—modern-day slavery; and just last week United Nations investigators called it “impressive” and praised its
“independent and robust enforcement mechanism.”
As the
veteran food writer Barry Estabrook put
it, thanks to the Fair Food Program, the Florida tomato industry is on
the path “from being one of the most repressive employers in the
country…to becoming the most progressive group in the fruit and
vegetable industry” today.
But we need your help to complete this transformation.
One of the country’s largest supermarket chains, Publix Super
Markets, is refusing to support the Fair Food Program. Publix continues
to buy tomatoes from growers in the old way, where workers have no
access to the Fair Food Program’s proven protections. Rather than step
up to the highest human rights standards, Publix continues to turn its
back on the workers whose poverty helps fuel its record profits.
Tell Publix Super Markets CEO William Crenshaw to join the fight against human rights abuses in the US tomato industry.
3) From Ralph da Costa Nunez, President and CEO, Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness:
“Make a Personal Commitment to Helping Homeless Families.”
More than one-third of Americans who use shelters annually are
parents and their children. In 2011, that added up to more than 500,000
people. Since 2007, family homelessness has increased by more than 13
percent. Indeed, there is a growing prevalence of child and family
homelessness
across America.
While it is important to track the federal, state and local policies that impact homelessness, we can’t forget about
getting involved on a personal level with the growing numbers of families that are struggling since the Great Recession.
You can
visit a local shelter, meet a homeless family and see first hand the damage poverty is doing to young mothers and children. Then,
become a big brother or sister,
a role model for these young families to help them dream again. You are
meeting an immediate need while also helping to stem generational
poverty.
You can also
contact your local department of social
services, United Way or religious organization to find out where the
need is in your community. Also, speak with the
homeless liaison at your local school
to see what needs they have identified in your neighborhood. There are
many ways that you (and your children) can help families right in your
community.
Here are a few other ideas.
4) From Dr. Deborah Frank, Founder and Principal
Investigator, Children’s Healthwatch: “Fund the federal Low Income Home
Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) at the maximum authorized level.”
Research by
Children’s HealthWatch
has shown that energy insecurity is associated with poor health,
increased hospitalizations and risk of developmental delays in very
young children, and that
energy assistance can be effective in protecting children’s health.
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) provides
low-income households with assistance in paying their utility
bills—particularly those that must spend higher proportions of their
income on home energy. To be eligible for LIHEAP, families must have
incomes at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level—less than
$35,000 annually for a family of four.
When Children’s HealthWatch compared children in families that do and
do not receive LIHEAP assistance—after controlling for participation in
SNAP and WIC—we found that children in families that received LIHEAP
were less likely to be at risk of growth problems, more likely to have
healthier weights for their age and less likely to be hospitalized when
seeking care for acute medical problems.
As pediatricians and public health researchers, we at Children’s
HealthWatch know that LIHEAP matters for the bodies and minds of young
children. Even in these tough economic times, we believe it is critical
that President Obama and Congress make a funding commitment that meets
the heating and cooling needs of America’s youngest children.
But the President has proposed reducing funding for LIHEAP to $2.970
billion in his FY 2014 budget, down from $3.5 billion for the current
fiscal year. (Even funding at the current level has left millions of
households without the aid they need to cope with their home energy
costs.)
Please join the National Fuel Fund’s call
to fund LIHEAP at $4.7 billion in FY2014. Although that level is
insufficient to meet the full needs of vulnerable households, it will
enable states to end a trend over the last few years of needing to
reduce the number of households served, cut benefits or both. Contact the President and your Members of Congress today.
5) Sarita Gupta, Executive Director, Jobs with
Justice/American Rights at Work and Co-Director, Caring Across
Generations: “Support of a living wage and basic labor protections for
home care workers.”
Caring Across Generations is a campaign that unites people to change
the long-term care system that supports each of us, our family members
and our neighbors, to live and age in our own homes and communities. One
of the key ways we can strengthen this system is to protect the 2.5
million people working as care givers in the United States. With a
projected future demand for an additional 1.3 million workers over the
next decade, home care workers make up one of the largest occupations in
the nation, yet many of them make below minimum wage.
In December 2011, at a White House ceremony surrounded by home care
workers, employers and people who rely on personal care services,
President Obama announced plans for new regulations that would at long
last guarantee federal minimum wage and overtime protections for most
home care aides. The moment capped decades of effort by advocates to
revise the “companionship exemption,” which lumps professional care
workers with teenage babysitters, excluding most home care aides from
the basic labor protections that nearly all other American workers
receive.
Following the White House announcement, the US Department of Labor
published draft regulations in the Federal Register. During the public
comment period, the proposed rule received 26,000 comments with almost
80 percent in favor of providing home care workers with basic labor
protections like minimum wage and overtime pay. But today, over a year
after the public comment period closed, we are still waiting for a final
rule to be announced.
Join Caring Across Generations and all of our partner
organizations in the effort to push for basic minimum wage and overtime
protections for care workers, and help us in our final push to ensure
that the Obama Administration issues this long-awaited regulation to
give 2.5 million care workers a path out of poverty. Visit www.caringacross.org to get involved with the campaign.
6) From Judith Lichtman, Senior Advisor, National Partnership for Women & Families: “Urge Congress to pass the Healthy Families Act (H.R. 1286/S.631) and a national paid leave program”
More than
40 million workers
in this country—and more than 80 percent of the lowest-wage
workers—cannot earn a single paid sick day to use when they get the flu
or other common illnesses. Millions more cannot earn paid sick days to
use when a child is sick.
For these workers and families, paid sick days can mean the
difference between keeping a job and losing it, or keeping food on the
table and going hungry. Nearly
one quarter of adults
say they have lost a job or been threatened with job loss for needing a
sick day. And, for the average worker without paid sick days, taking
just 3.5 unpaid days off is
equivalent to
losing a month’s worth of groceries for their family. To make matters
worse, the majority of new parents cannot take any form of paid leave of
any length to care for a child, pushing many into debt and poverty. The
United States is
one of only a handful of countries that does not have a national paid leave standard of some kind.
In a nation that claims to value families, no worker should have to
lose critical income or be pushed into poverty because illness strikes
or a child or family member needs care.
Urge members of Congress to support the Healthy Families Act, legislation that would guarantee workers the right to earn paid sick days. And sign this petition calling on Congress to take up the national paid leave program workers and families urgently need.
7) From Tiffany Loftin, President, United States Student Association (USSA):
“Increase regulation of private student loans and hold Sallie Mae accountable for its role in the student debt crisis.”
Throughout the Great Recession, only one type of household debt grew: student debt.
In April 2012, student debt surpassed the $1 trillion mark, and now
students owe on average nearly $27,000 by the time they graduate. As
student debt and student loan defaults escalate at an unsustainable
pace, private student loan lenders continue to increase their profit
margins.
Sallie Mae is the largest private student loan lender and
one of the chief profiteers off student debt, yet it faces minimal
public scrutiny and accountability. With their sky-high interest rates,
highly profitable government loan servicing contracts and predatory
lending practices, they play a major role in keeping the American Dream
out of reach for millions of borrowers.
Join USSA, the Student Labor Action Project (SLAP), Jobs with
Justice/American Rights at Work, Common Cause, the American Federation
of Teachers and others at the Sallie Mae shareholder meeting on May 30
in Newark, Delaware.
We’ll introduce a shareholder resolution asking
Sallie Mae to be more transparent and accountable about its lobbying
efforts, affiliations and executive bonus structure—all part of a
corporate strategy to increase their bottom line at the financial
expense of borrowers.
Sign up to attend the join the shareholder action here.
8) From Elizabeth Lower-Basch, Policy Coordinator, the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP): “Support Pathways Back to Work”
Even as the economy recovers, too many unemployed workers and
individuals with low education and skill levels face a difficult job
market. Nearly two out of five unemployed workers have been jobless for
six months or more; 6.7 million youth are both out of work and out of
school.
Subsidized and transitional jobs are a proven way
to give unemployed workers the opportunity to earn wages, build skills
and connect to the labor market, while also giving businesses an
incentive to hire new employees when they might not be able to do so
otherwise.
President Obama’s FY14 budget blueprint calls for the creation of a $12.5 billion Pathways Back to Work Fund that includes:
investments in subsidized employment opportunities,
support services for the unemployed and low-income adults, summer and
year-round employment opportunities for low-income youth and other
work-based employment strategies with demonstrated effectiveness.
Please share this letter with nonprofits, businesses or other organizations and ask them to sign on to join us in thanking President Obama
for his support of subsidized and transitional jobs in the FY2014
budget, and asking the President and Congress to work together to ensure
that the Pathways Back to Work Fund becomes law! (This sign on
letter is only for organizations, but individuals are also encouraged
to ask their Members of Congress to support the Pathways Back to Work
Fund—click the “reintroduce” buttons
here and
here.)
9) From Marci Phillips, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy, National Council on Aging:
“Invest in the Older Americans Act.”
The Older Americans Act encompasses a range of programs that enable
seniors to remain healthy and independent, in their own homes and
communities and out of costly institutions. Services include healthy
meals, in-home care, transportation, benefits access, caregiver support,
chronic disease self-management, job training and placement and elder
abuse prevention.
Funding has not kept pace with the growth in need or numbers, and recent cuts
before
the sequester hit have further eroded investments in key services.
About 10,000 people turn 65 each day, and those over 85 are the fastest
growing segment of the aging population.
One in three seniors is economically insecure. Social Security
accounts for at least 90 percent of the income of more than one-third of
older adults, and there has been a 79 percent increase in the threat of
hunger among seniors over the past decade. The average duration of
unemployment for people 55 and older is almost 50 weeks—longer than any
other age group. Over 75 percent of all older adults have at least two
chronic conditions, and the average Medicare household spends $4,500 on
out-of-pocket health care costs.
There is a real need to increase funding for Older Americans Act programs like Meals on Wheels and in-home care.
Please share your stories of cuts affecting seniors, so we can share them with Congress and the Administration and protect investments in the Older Americans Act.
10) From Rebecca Vallas, Staff Attorney/Policy Advocate, Community Legal Services: "Tell Congress NO CUTS to Social Security and SSI through the Chained CPI."
While the "chained CPI" is often referred to as just a technical
change, in truth it's a benefit cut for millions of seniors, people with
disabilities and their families who rely on the Social Security system
to meet their basic needs. Social Security retirement, disability and
survivors benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) serve as a
vital lifeline, making up a significant percentage of total family
income for many workers and families.
The average yearly benefit for the lowest quintile of earners
receiving retirement benefits in 2010 was $10,206—and that represented
94 percent of their family income. Social Security Disability and SSI
benefits are incredibly modest as well. The average SSDI benefit is
about $1,100 per month in 2013, and the average SSI benefit is less than
$550 per month. And for most disabled workers receiving Social Security
Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI),
their benefits make up most or all of their income. Even the maximum SSI
benefit ($710 in 2013) is just three-fourths of the federal poverty
level for a single person, and a quarter of SSDI beneficiaries live in
poverty.
The amount a person gets in Social Security or SSI benefits is
adjusted annually based on the Social Security Cost-of-Living Adjustment
(COLA). The chained CPI would slow the increase in the Social Security
COLA, cutting benefits and eroding the purchasing power of seniors,
people with disabilities and their families. Cuts under the chained CPI
add up significantly over time. Since the effect of the chained CPI is
cumulative, it would be especially hard on people with disabilities,
since they typically begin receiving benefits at a younger age than
retirees.
The chained CPI is not a more accurate measure of inflation for
seniors and people with disabilities. It is based on a concept called
the "substitution effect"—which assumes that when the price of one good
goes up, a consumer will substitute a lower-cost alternative in its
place (e.g., when the price of steak goes up, a person will buy
hamburger instead). For Social Security and SSI beneficiaries who are
struggling to make ends meet as it is, there’s no room for
substitution—and no room for benefit cuts. Benefit cuts under the
chained CPI would push beneficiaries to make impossible choices such as
not paying the gas bill to afford the water bill, taking half a pill
instead of a whole pill or eating two meals per day instead of three to
afford the cost of a copay on a needed medication.
Low-income seniors and people with severe disabilities are already struggling and can't afford cuts. Send this
email
to Congress to tell them NO on the chained CPI, and to keep Social
Security cuts out of any budget plan. For AARP's chained CPI calculator,
click
here.
11) From Jim Weill, President, Food Research and Action Center: “Tell Congress: Increase, Don’t Cut SNAP (Food Stamp) Benefits.”
SNAP is a great program—boosting food security, health and nutrition
and lifting millions out of poverty and millions of others out of deep
poverty. But as a National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine
expert committee just found, for most families
benefits simply aren’t enough to afford a healthy diet for the month.
This means that the program isn’t doing as much for food security,
poverty reduction, child development, disease prevention and health care
cost containment as it could. And despite a series of
Pinocchio-inspired political attacks on the program in the 2012 election
season and in this year’s run-up to SNAP reauthorization as part of the
Farm Bill,
public support for the program is high:
73 percent of voters believe the program is important to the country;
70 percent say cutting it is the wrong way to reduce government
spending; and 77 percent say the government should be spending more (43
percent) or the same (34 percent) on SNAP. This support crosses parties,
demographic groups, and rural, urban, and suburban lines.
Here’s what you can do:
Tell your Representatives and Senators
that the right course for the nation is to improve food stamp benefits
(and support at least the temporary benefit boost the President has
proposed) and that they must oppose any SNAP cuts being considered by
the Agriculture Committees in the “Farm Bill.”
12) From Debbie Weinstein, Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs: “Tell Congress to stop harmful cuts to anti-poverty programs now.”
Across the country, federal “sequestration” cuts (aka mindless
automatic reductions) are closing Head Start programs weeks early and
canceling summer programs for poor 3 to 5 year old children; some Head
Start centers are closing altogether or dropping children. Seniors are
losing home-delivered meals or
homemaker services that allow them to remain at home instead of being pushed into nursing homes. The
long-term jobless
are losing 10 to 20 percent of their meager benefits; in Maine, they
decided to cut all unemployed people off of assistance 9 weeks early.
One hundred forty thousand fewer families will get rental housing vouchers, despite waiting for help for years, which will contribute to
rising family homelessness.
Education is being cut, from pre-school to the Federal Work-Study
Program (formerly “College Work-Study”) that helps students finance
college through part-time employment. In Michigan, they are eliminating a
$137 back-to-school clothing allowance for 21,000 poor children.
These cuts are wrong and foolish any way you slice it—they keep people poor, cost jobs and stall economic growth for everyone.
Send this email
to your Representative and Senators and join hundreds of thousands who
are fed up that Congress would ignore these problems while fixing just
one thing—inconvenient delays at airports. Also, for weekly summaries of the impact of these sequester cuts, click
here.
Standing for Communities: ‘The Power of Collective’ (from the Marguerite Casey Foundation via
Equal Voice News)
© 2013 The Nation
Greg Kaufmann is a Nation contributor covering poverty in America. He has been a guest on NPR, including Here & Now and Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane, and various local radio programs including the Matthew Filipowicz Show.
His work has also appeared on Common Dreams, Alternet, Tikkun.org,
NPR.org, CBSNews.com, and MichaelMoore.com. He previously worked as a
staffer for the Kerry campaign, a copywriter and speechwriter for
various Democrats in national and local politics, and as a
screenwriter. He serves as an advisor for the Economic Hardship
Reporting Project.
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