Hunger in our Midst: Bob Brady's Philadelphia ranks #2 in the Nation
James Dugan
With the world focused on Haiti and its survival, an article appeared in Tuesday's Philadelphia newspaper that may shock us philanthropists. Phila.-area district 2d-hungriest in U.S., study says By Alfred Lubrano is a candid look at hunger and its pivotal role in the Philadelphia region. Food shortage is not something we associate with the Philadelphia region or America in general, but it is real and living next to us. There is a sense that we can do nothing about it. But as the world mobilizes in Haiti to save lives and rebuild a society, Lubrano's piece might just be the catalyst needed to motivate our charity to perform a more civic and local duty.
Why is the far away tragedy so much easier to deal with? Corporations and individuals share thousands of dollars to insure food, water and housing when disasters happen. But a closer look at this article or maybe just by watching the news, or even maybe by being cognizant of the things that pass your window on your drive to work, will wake us up to the stark reality of poverty and hunger existing right here. The question must hit home: How can the second largest population of people who are hungry exists within miles of our houses? The numbers are mind blowing. 36% of the households in Bob Brady's district have a shortage of food to feed their families. Even if we just let this go for a minute. 18% of America experienced this shortage of food for their families each day in 2008. That is 1 in 5 families suffering from hunger. Bob Brady should lose his position as a Congressman because of the amount of hungry people he is failing each day. It is the responsibility of our representatives to insure our voice in government. As the article states, "After studying the FRAC report, Carey Morgan, executive director of the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger, said she was not surprised to see the numbers...she said government officials should be made accountable to "enact responsible policy" to aid the poor - such as helping women on welfare receive more support for child care so they can go to work." This accountability should be not based on loyalty to a political party but on results that each representative is bringing to his area.
What is Brady doing today to relieve the pain his constituents are experiencing? What job is he insuring or creating? Maybe you feel that it is not the job of government to create jobs or feed people, but then why do we have a government at all? Government is meant to insure a voice, especially those dejected by social or economic policies, and our officials should be working for their local. In a republic like America, we need to know that our representatives are striving for our best interests. Brady is failing and he is failing in the worst way. The article will not go as far as to insult or attack Brady, a powerful local democrat, but the lunch break will. A paper can not make claims, shove them in a Tuesday paper, report a large section of Philadelphia residents in a hunger crisis, then refuse to make a call to action or provide any conclusions. We should all shoulder the blame for having the 2nd largest hunger district in America, but Brady should lose his job and the "people's voice" newspaper should play a larger role in making the public aware but also enacting change.
We can do more. The article does explain why more and more Americans are experiencing what must be the worst human experience: not being able to feed your family. If we can provide the assistance in Haiti, then surely we can help our neighbors. First, we need to hold our politicians accountable. Second, we need to actively seek a charitable organization in Bob Brady's area that is focusing on food. Third, we need to provide financial help or food for these families.
It seems we remember the homeless when it gets cold. We remember the pain of loss and death when we are confronted with it on television. But for most of us, we have never felt hunger or the despair of not having enough to eat. We need to fix these numbers. We need to eradicate hunger, not only in the world, but right here at home. We are all to blame, but as Haiti is proving, our altruism and hope is not bounded by race, nationality, or politics. That same spirit that is lifting Haiti can help South Philadelphia, Chester and all those who are suffering right here at home.
Reader Comments (6)
Great post! Any time there is a catastrophe, especially in a foreign nation, and an outpouring of support ensues, nations are forced to reflect on their own failings. Your piece uses the original article very well and extends this connection between Haiti's troubles and our own domestic crises. However, I don't think it is the obligation of the paper, especially this section of the paper, to make such an explicit connection. That should be left to editorials and blogs, like your piece did. But to the point of your piece- Firing Brady for not properly addressing and rectifying this issue. The timing of such a radical argument is quite appropriate to Obama's SOU speech last evening in which he chastised failing rural and urban schools alike for not improving the quality of life and enhancing the opportunity of jobs and future schooling. So, according to Obama, all of the issues you addressed: hunger, poverty, etc. are actually the schools responsibility rather than congressmen and women who oversee these districts. Your proposition seems completely sensible to me. If we are going to address these issues, we must hold the most powerful accountable. That's the system of accountability in almost all other fields: sports, business, and now schools. Politicians have used everyone else as complete scapegoats for so long that it is genuinely sickening. I'm actually thinking about this hypocrisy as I write and becoming enraged, wanting to punch the next double-talking politician in the face for passing the buck on to someone else! Obama was no better last night. If it wasn't the last administration, it's the schools fault, or the Republicans fault, or the Supreme Courts fault, etc. The only problem with your argument and mine, is that we do have this power- to remove failing politicians- but we rarely appropriately enact it. And if we do, we remove them for the wrong reasons.
As for addressing hunger, I've been reading Eating Animals, by Johnathan Safran Foer, and there are a few sections dedicated to rethinking the way we waste edible food in America. PETA's Bruce Friedrich contemplates our use of grain to feed animals, which will be used solely for consumption. According to him, the UN special envoy declared it a "crime against humanity" to funnel 100 million tons of grain and corn to ethanol while almost a billion people are starving worldwide. So Friedrich rightly asks what do you call the use of 756 million tons of grain and corn used per year to support animal agriculture, which is just a big way of saying eating meat and other animal products. Foer himself reflects on the wasted meat of dogs and cats, seen as a delicacy in many cultures. What if after euthanizing our beloved pets, we permit their remains to be used to feed the starving? Ironically, most advocacy groups for the poor and hungry probably wouldn't permit this to occur because it make the hungry seem like 2nd class citizens.
Either way, it is evident that merely throwing money at these deeply rooted social, economical, political, cultural issues is not enough. I'm sure if you did further research you would probably find that we already spend millions of dollars aiding the poor in our city. However, just like our money in Haiti will have no long-term effect if we don't commit ourselves to helping the Haitians revitalize their entire way of living, then we can assume that impoverished, hungry Philadelphians will continue to endure the same fate as other ignored, third-world countries.
I would conclude with our usual sign-off, but it just doesn't seem appropriate. So, thanks for the hearty read instead!
I couldn't agree with you more about parts of America being equal to third world countries. In fact, I appreciate your candor and emotion when addressing the story. I was shocked when I read this. There has to be poorer areas, but to see a long time politician who has served the area be exposed, I couldn't say I wasn't happy.
Of course there are many issues that brings the working class to their knees of dejection and eventually apathy. But these places have been poor for the last forty years, since the last job was actually created in South Philly and Chester that didn't have state on it or restaurant.
Maybe your point is correct about polticians. They do not have to be held accountable because they have no clear definitions of success except maybe getting rid of a ticket by pressuring someone or greasing some wheels to help ease beuacracy.
I just believe there must be a voice and you are right: it is the job of the lunch break. We must expose and expound and discuss if we are to be fully aware.
Thanks again for the comments.
I agree with the theme of these comments and the fact that Brady's ass needs the boot since this is happening in his district. Bottom line is that people really need to grasp that a politicians #1 goal above all other things is: REMAIN IN OFFICE. Every other agenda is a distant second. I no longer view politicans as Red or Blue. They are all people who constituency is one person...themselves. The Founding Fathers never expected citizens to become career politicans. It was something to be done after they had had careers in the private sector first. Too many run for office in hopes of spending 30 years in some legislative branch and enjoy the perks, pension and other goodies associated with it. None of them have nobel goals.
I never grasped the desire for celebrities to preach about giving aid to other countries yet ignoring the hunger problem here. Though it does annoy me that when this country gets shit on, people tend to forget that we are usually the first to send aid to any foreign country in the event of some calamity. For as many faults as this country does have, I think the generosity and caring shown my most of "Middle America" tends to be forgotten.
Where I disagree with the column and comments posted here is when you compare the impoverished areas here with those of 3rd world countries. Our poor areas here are no better or worse than those in other countries like England, Ireland, Italy, Greece, etc. You cannot fathom the level of human suffering that goes on in truly poor areas such as Africa, India, parts of Latin America, etc. They aspire to be poor. We have hungry people, they have starving people. And for all the talk of our horrid healthcare, most community hospitals are required to treat everyone that enters their ER even if they know they cannot pay. This is why so many of them in financial trouble. Trust me...I know of 4 hospitals alone in NJ the past 3 years taht went under due to this.
CJ,
You make a valid point that our inner cities are far cries from the 3rd world conditions of many Asain, African, and South American nations, but they are definitely the worst of the wealthiest nations, which I feel makes their existence far more despicable. America is the wealthiest country in the world and it is still incapable of managing these problems. While I do not condone the tragic situations abroad, it is understandable in many of these countries where there hasn't been even an iota of civilized government in decades, and in some cases centuries. For America to even have a remote resemblance of hunger, poverty, or violence to certain 3rd world countries is that much more shameful.
Coincidentally, a friend of mine sent me this video about the current state of affairs in Liberia, founded by former American slaves and the first African nation we attempted to institute democracy in. It's scary in relation to the situation in Haiti.
http://www.vbs.tv/watch/the-vice-guide-to-travel/the-vice-guide-to-liberia-1-of-8
Patrick,
I agree with you that there should be no excuse for a country with the resources we have to allow certain parts of this nation to fall into such disarray. Yet, I watched some of those videos regarding the situation in Liberia and you make my point that for as bad as some areas in the US are...they are Shang Ri-Lah compared to what real slums are like in 3rd World Countries.
But the question becomes, when do you blame the gov't and when do you blame the inhabitants for allowing the area to become such a slum in the first place? East New York in Brooklyn used to be a good area filled with working class folks. It is now one of the worst drug dens of the city. How does that happen? The gov't cannot roll into there with Sherman tanks and wipe out the dealers, companies do not want to invest into the area because they fear the will get robbed blind in a matter of weeks. At a certain point, do you blame the citizens of a neighborhood for not fighting to keep the drugs and crimes out?
CJ,
The first area for hunger in this nation is in the Bronx. I think you make an excellent point about America not comparing to third world nations. Perhaps I was over zealous. But when I take the train in and view West Philly. When I see the parts of Kensington and Logan, and countless other streets, especially in winter, it is bad. I remember the train from Queens into Manhattan, taking it every day and see the incredible poverty of the Bronx and Harlem, and Queens and then getting into Manhattan -- as if the worlds didn't even belong together let alone being separated by a ten minute car ride.
I just do not understand why there is poverty and hunger. Why homes are burned out shells? Why when you go through Chester, you think how and why do people live this way? You are right and thanks for allowing me to explain. Our poverty may not be as extensive as other nations, but in reference to the wealth we have that juxtaposes the intense poverty, it is more severe. Anyway, the people of America should at least benefit some from capitalist success.
Thanks for your replies Edmonds and CJ