food security: low-saving U.S.families

See also

Household Pulse Survey in November reported that Nearly 26 million adults (12% of all adults) said their household had food shortages in the past week.

Millions of children get free or reduced-price meals at school, says Prof Schanzenbach, “and losing access to that really hurts” for families already on the brink.

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/26/politics/trump-biden-thanksgiving-two-americas/index.html described “the vast challenges facing so many, their lives financially devastated by the pandemic, who have turned to increasingly strained charitable organizations to temporarily satisfy basic needs.” .. like feeding the family.

Washington Post survey of Census Bureau data from late October and early November 2020 found that food insecurity growing at a terrifying pace. One in 8 Americans said they sometimes or often did not have enough[1] to eat during the previous week, a figure that climbed to 1 in 6 in homes with children.

[1] I assume “enough” is subject to interpretation by the respondents, thereby weakening the value of this research.

Kamala Harris tweeted “Food banks across our nation are struggling to keep up with the demand due to COVID-19.” Personally, my judgement is that she can’t afford to exaggerate, not with the spotlight on her tweets.

Describing a family of four who had exhausted their savings, O’Connell spoke to CNN about the feelings of shame that often accompany having to ask for help. “They came to us to be able to put food on their table this Thanksgiving,” she said. “One of the parents stayed in the car because they were a little bit embarrassed about how they were getting food.”