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A Hungry Nation

The Dow might be on the rebound, but there’s little evidence that the fortunes are trickling down to the lowest-income families in the country. Nearly 15

Jul 31, 202080.6K Shares1.9M Views
The Dow might be on the rebound, but there’s little evidence that the fortunes are trickling down to the lowest-income families in the country. Nearly 15 percent of American families had trouble putting food on the table at some point last year — the highest rate since the government began surveying hunger 14 years ago, the Department of Agriculture reports today. Stating the obvious:
The fundamental cause of food insecurity and hunger in the United States is poverty — marked by a lack of adequate resources to address basic needs such as food, shelter and health care.
The 14.6-percent food insecurity rate translates into 17 million households, up from 13 million the year before. The figures were tallied before the $787 billion stimulus bill passed in February. Still, with unemployment having risen steadily through 2009, there’s nothing to indicate that the rising hunger trend will have reversed itself in the meantime.
Paula M. Graham

Paula M. Graham

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