Tackling Food Insecurity in the meal-centered holiday season

By Nayaba Arinde
Editor at Large
NoKidHungry.org says that “1 in 5 kids is at risk of hunger in America.”
The Food Bank for New York City notes that a million New Yorkers are struggling to find food daily.
“No one should have to choose between food or medication or not having enough to feed their children or family members,” Brooklyn Veterans for Social Justice (BVSJ) President/CEO Wendy McClinton told Our Time Press.

It is turkey-giving season. Politicians, activist organizations, and churches traditionally give out the festive bird to New Yorkers eager to ensure that they can partake in the seasonal tradition.
Bed Stuy-born comedian Tracey Morgan displayed his benevolence as he hand-to-hand helped distribute 400 turkeys to Tompkins Houses on Sunday with Food Bank for New York City and Stop and Shop. Lines of local residents were excited to receive the gift personally from the world-renowned comedian.

Marcy Houses is where former resident Jay Z, alongside his wife superstar Beyonce, have also previously given out turkeys during the holiday season.
“BVSJ sees food insecurities in our neighborhood especially amongst our veterans, family members of veterans and our seniors living in the community,” said Ms. McClinton.
Every Wednesday, and definitely around the holidays, the line of people gets longer and longer; Sometimes wrapping around the block.”

Camara L. Jackson, founder and CEO of the Elite Learners Inc., told Our Time Press that she has definitely seen an increase in food insecurity in the Flatbush neighborhood, “The situation is urgent. Food insecurity has worsened since the pandemic, with a 25 percent increase in families and teenagers seeking support. This is not just a problem for the young, but also for veterans and other vulnerable segments of our community. The need for more access to healthy food choices is also a pressing issue.”

Funding to feed those in need has been cut, Ms. Jackson said.
“Unfortunately, food resources were cut drastically, and I am actively searching for funding to support Elite’s food pantry. It has been challenging to put together entire meals for pantry deliveries. This situation is extremely heartbreaking.”
The community cavalry stays at the ready of course.
The National Supermarket Association has spent the last week giving out free turkeys to area customers.

It is not about the bird, which folk are just thankful for, it is about what it means they can do for their families. As hyped as Thanksgiving and Christmas are, some people just do not have the budget, and this action enables them to partake in the day like so many of their neighbors and family members. The conversation about policy and legislation around hunger, poverty, and the undomiciled gets the floodlight treatment this time of year.

The old adage of give a man a fishing rod etc., may come to mind for some, as this annual community philanthropy focuses on Thanksgiving and Christmas day specifically, others point out that it is the cultural and even spiritual element which has the recipients grateful for this milk of human kindness.

This, while Thanksgiving is seen as a political red flag by people who look into the history of what was done to the Indigenous people on these shores, while others stress that the day is used to gather with family and friends.

The specter of homeless and hungry lingers like a heavy rain cloud.
All manner of community leaders, 501c3 organizations, and churches make great efforts to offer services to feed people in the neighborhood who need help putting food on the table.
Such groups in Brooklyn include; the Campaign Against Hunger, Inc., the Center for Family Life in Sunset Park, Inc., Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services, Inc., in Downtown Brooklyn, Crown Heights Youth Collective, Inc., and Elite Learners, Inc., in Flatbush.
Ocean Hill Brownsville’s Campaign Against Hunger are proud of their community impact serving produce and meals, with “1,500,000 individuals served, and 45,000,000 nutritious meals, since the pandemic.”

On the Brooklyn streets lines and lines of folk with shopping carts can be seen on any day of the week, wrapping around buildings, many are elders, definitely young families, single men, and the unhoused.

Hunger and food insecurity does not exist in a vacuum, recognizing this, the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) says that they strive to “alleviate the effects of poverty and provide opportunities for New Yorkers to reach their full potential. We acknowledge that institutional racism and discrimination have been and remain significant drivers of poverty and inequities in New York City neighborhoods. We recognize the role that the policies and practices of systems and institutions, including NYC government agencies such as DYCD, may play in perpetuating structural inequities.”

Therefore tackling those admitted inequities addresses the causes and not just the devastating symptoms.
While one man on a Crown Heights corner of Fulton Street corner told another to stop aggressively “asking people going to work for money every single morning,” the response was, “I don’t want your money, I just want to eat,” and tossed the donated dollar to the ground.
Tis the season for excessive eating promotion, commercially-sponsored recipe sharing, and traditional family tales of food-related way-back-when-isms. Unless of course, you are amongst the tens of thousands of New Yorkers who are suffering from food-insecurity, or even houselessness.

A current manslaughter trial highlights hunger and desperate need in the City. Jordan Neeley was held in a deadly 6 minute “blood choke” hold by ex-marine Daniel Petty, when the Michael Jackson performer reportedly with a documented history of mental illness, got on a F train asking for food. He said he was hungry and tired, and just wanted to eat. Petty said he was protecting other passengers when he grappled the verbally-threatening young man to the train car floor and held him in a sleeper hold there until he died.
The other disturbing points notwithstanding, the case emphasizes that hunger in the city is a real ongoing problem.

Dr. Melony Samuels, Executive Director and Founder of The Campaign Against Hunger recognizes “that the fight against hunger goes far beyond individual acts of kindness. It takes a village.” So for twenty-two years, they have met “some of the day’s toughest challenges–like youth empowerment, nutrition education, and community engagement–head-on.”
They say they have “served neighbors in 150 zip codes with food and other vital programs and services, and sought to bring food justice to New York City… [their mission] continues to evolve as food insecurity, economic inequality, and health disparities continue to plague our communities.”