Associate vice president of Student Academic Support Services Peter Konwerski describes living on a food stamp budget for a week.
For the past 15 years, I have taught a course, titled Empowerment for Social Change, in the GW Human Services Program. This year, as students planning Hunger Week worked to apply Saul Alinsky’s practical primer, Rules for Radicals, to their campus and community organizing, they encouraged me to take the Food Stamp Challenge. The concept sounded simple enough: eat for a week on a budget of $28.75, the rate set for an individual on food stamps.
I understand that living on food stamps is a very difficult situation that many would not like to be in. But, as a cashier at Wal-Mart, I am disgusted by many of the purchases on food stamps. Bubble gum, candy bars, ice creams, gingerbread houses and many more are all avaiable for purchase with food stamps. I understand that many people go hungry, but without having the ability to purchase such junk, many of these people would have a lot more money to spend on actual food than junk. Ohh and my other favorite item, a 8 pack of Red Bull energy drinks, that cost over 12 dollars, you can purchase with food stamps. I am willing to give more money to food stamps if I knew it would be going to actual nourishing food instead of junk.
Another problem not addressed is how COLA, cost of living adjustment. When given a 3 per cent cost of living increase it decreases the amount of food stamps given. This makes absolutely no sense, exspecially when food has increased much more than 3 per cent a year
Although I am a wealthy person I spend very little on foods because I live on rice and beans. Nothing bothers me more when I see people use foods stamps (my money since I am still paying taxes at 70) to buy expensive steaks and water when I am getting my proteins from beans and drinking tap water which is perfect in michigan.
Who are we to judge what people buy on food stamps?
Haven’t you ever had a cookie because it made you smile and feel better? Maybe they just wanted to smile.
Food stamps, while it is a well-intentioned program, is woefully inadequate to meet the needs of the poor. I too am outraged by the availability of junk food to food stamp recipients – and especially outraged that fruits and vegetables were only allowed to be purchased on food stamps in October. Especially considering the astronomical rates of obesity and ill-health among the poor, this is nothing but absurd. Yes, sugary, nutrient-deficient processed carbohydrates might make them happy for a moment, but it doesn’t contribute to their health and, transitively, their economic situation. If anything, food stamp recipients should be limited to purchasing whole foods (meats, cheese, fruits, vegetables, beans, etc) – that is, foods that are generally nutritionally sound. The goal of food stamps is to help the poor, not further drive them into misfortune. Unfortunately, programs such as food stamps and welfare rarely help people. It’s a shame, and a waste of resources. Surely there are better and more efficient ways to help the poor!
As a student finishing my Masters in Public Health at GW who found myself without anywhere to live due to the high cost of my health insurance this last July- I ask myself WHY DIDN’T I “sign up for food stamps.” Many of you have made interesting comments. . . but for one who has lived all sides of the stories and frankly studied the issues let me say this. Fresh food and beans and rice are ideal but when you don’t know where you are going to be staying or who you will be staying with- Red Bull, and JUNK food is the way to go. If you don’t have a place to prepare the food or electricity then well you really don’t have anything. I have no answer to the solution just what I have experienced. I am still loosing weight even with the garbage I eat. It is filling and that is what is important to me right now. NOT FEELING HUNGRY.
I’m surprised that you had so much trouble following the food stamp budget. My husband and I first tried eating on this budget two years ago – and we haven’t stopped yet! We do shop for two, and we do shop for the week/month. Buying and cooking in bulk definitely saves. It took us a couple of months to get used to managing our budget at the supermarket, but now we eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, and even treats from time to time. In fact, I would say we eat a lot healthier now than we did before. We eat less beef and pork, more wholesome eggs. We make our own bread (I have a bread machine), and we have nearly cut cheese out of our diet. We stock up during sales and use our freezer.
As an MBA student at GW myself, I am pretty sure I spend less on groceries for my family of (now) 3 than any of my classmates do for just themselves. Imagine how many people GW students and faculty could feed through donations if they planned their meals, shopped smart and cooked to meet their needs.
I belive that people who are on foodstamps should be able to buy whatever they want such as candy, ice cream, sodas. Just because they have foodstamps doesn’t mean they should only be able to buy healthy idems. They have kids, therefore kids need sugar not just protien.