The Growing Face of Modern Hunger in America 

So many terrible comments on here :( the majority of americans are living paycheck to paycheck. For many, one medical emergency or job loss can lead to a financial crisis. Educate yourselves on the reality of poverty before making assumptions.

Agreed! I was in their situation 5 years ago. A good friend encouraged me to take stewardship over the small amount of land I have in my backyard. I have just over a quarter acre. Now I grow strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, lettuce, carrots, apples, tomatoes, peppers, melons, cucumbers, ect ect. We are adding chickens this year for eggs too. All a man need to not starve is two hands and some dirt.

It's really to the point if your not working 80 hrs a week or more, you just don't make ends meet.

They do grow some food in a small space available at the (urban) home they rent. It's just that this was filmed in late winter/early spring and there wasn't much to show. If I remember correctly, they did have some lettuces and were planting peas the day I filmed. It's something that helps - and shows the girls about growing food - but not enough to feed a family.

There are people starving you would think would not be. It may be hard for some to believe this, but it is true. Even in your own backyard. I grew up poor in the States but there was always food. But looking back, some of the leaner times are not really the best memories. But still, if I ate an apple, a core would remain. I never thought I was waist- ing food. Then, I was sent abroad to live with my father. At the time of the following incident I will tell you, I was a long way from what I thought was less than spartan living - at all. But one day, I was in the city on a trolly car, probably from school. On a low bench on the open car sat an older woman with her bag. She reached into her bag and retrieved an apple. Until being abroad, I thought an apple was an apple was an apple. No, far from it. To see one, you may well not even know it was. She looked pitiful to this child as she protected and enjoyed that tiny edible. She took a long time savoring each mouthful as if she'd placed the apple in her mouth all at once. When she reached the core of the 'apple', I thought, 'finally lady, God you'd think you were starving'. First the end, the middle and seeds, the Entire thing. This very ignorant, but not rich, child couldn't believe it. 'Why would she eat the whole bloody thing, that's so wierd'. There was waist. The stem. I don't believe I'd have been surprised if she had eaten that too. But she rolled it between her fingers for some time, as if wrestling with the guilt of not consuming it. The stem was uncerimoniously tossed out onto the bumpy cobble stone street. I will never forget that. As I wittness the unimaginable glutony and waist here where I now live, it really disturbs me, probaly because I remember. As a child I gave thanks every single time I sat down to any meal. That poor ignorant child outgrew his ignorance, but became a fool. But, to someone's credit, I literally take Nothing for granted. Nothing. I remember, and I will never forget that, ever.

I had to visit two Food Banks in one day to find food to put in my house after I got a new job. That was an eye opening time for me, but it helped me to try to understand how these food banks work after I had volunteered to work in one out on the Columbia River. A lot of people depended on that food bank, it was a hard job to stock the shelves one week and do it again the next week. Gratitude is what people feel when they have a few groceries to cook. No reason to be ashamed that you need help. I donate a lot of food to the food bank.

Good for you!! It is surely amazing how much food can be harvested from a small patch of earth!! Best to you!

"Once people get a taste of sitting on their butts and having everything handed to them, ...." I would suggest you talk to people in your community who are dealing with people in need. They will tell you that systematically, over decades, we have stripped away the safety net that has helped provide support to people in need. In oregon, (too) many people are living on emergency food boxes for more than a year. This is food that nutritionally is not designed to be eaten for extended periods.

Good for you. We all need to do more of that.

Here is a working family trying to make it work but there is a real problem for the working poor. I think there are a lot of people placing the "working poor" in with those that don't work so they can take advantage of the government assistance programs. I agree with the post about working your yard as well and growing your own fruits and vegetables. Learning how to cook from scratch and growing your own food is how our parents and grandparents survived. This is not a two sided problem. What if we all asked what could we do for our neighbor. Can we teach them to garden? Can we take our tiller or our shovel and turn up the soil and plant some spinach or carrots?

I like how even her little ones pitch in to help her.

People don't always realize how expensive it is to raise children . It isn't only about shelter and food. It's also, about providing education, getting them interested in activities, by the time they r around 9 to develop their minds. The economy is changing ,because of technology. Risng rents, high taxes, inflated mortgages, greedy corporations, too many poor, not enough affordable housing, mass unemployment, and a global homeless crisis

I find learning basic recipies like how to bake bread, and make sourdough which doesn't require yeast, and how to use whole grains in recipes like I put whole grains in stew for filler and eat what our grandmothers did to raise a family, like milk and potatoes mashed and then you mix in noodles and put enough water to make a soup. Make lots of cabbage soup, and learn what wild plants you can eat too, and start growing a garden in the yard or window. You have to work harder but its going to pay off and it will help feed your family. Unless youre willing to learn other ways to feed yourself youre going to starve.

Yeah, thats what I was thinking. During hard times food has to come first...and I wouldnt buy magazines if there was a chance my kids would need the money for food. I know most people use their money better than this, but if we are to try to carry he ones who truly need it. I dont get why they needed the free child care when the husband was home. See these are the things that make people angry.

she dont look hunvry in fact she looks stuffed not trying to be mean honestly, sorry but its my opinion

Good video.

So my family's situation has gotten worse, but our resolve has gotten stronger. We have lost our home but are borrowing a friends backyard to grow vegetables. We are also currently looking for someone with a bit of land to raise some broilers and possibly some turkeys. Thanks for the encouragement Y'all.

Garage/internet sales and pawn shops can also get people through a short-term tough period.

Kids are astronomically expensive. They sometimes never leave home. A nightmare

Wait that’s a couple thousand dollar Mac book

Do you guys have a local farmer's market?

She says some weeks they have a lot of money for food.... try stocking up on tinned/ dry foods and frozen veg then for the weeks you don’t have much.

Very sad I hate to see kids be hungry I like the mom she seems nice ..I hope things get better. For them

Is it just me? I find it really hard too believe that you worked for a whole day, even at minimum wage, and you have three dependants, you only take home $1???? Something's not right about that story....

This is why folks are careful where they donate! The bank I donate to has a regular group of customers. The other is opened weekends! I am not getting ahead, however, I am fat enough to go without for a few days if need be! ( a body in Starvation mode stores fat! )!

so sad we have to learn to grown our own vegetables rear our own meats e.g chicken n we have to be more self sufficient

Messy house.....messy life. It goes hand in hand.

I was up with her until I saw she has a macbook?! I'm scratching a living off of disability and all I can afford is my 8 year old 3rd hand desktop that doesn't even have a real monitor.Just an old tv someone gave me.

I see so many nasty comments, “dont have kids if you cant eat””get a job” “save your money”…let me mental floss some of yall. I am an almost 30 year old mentally disabled female who draws a check (which by the way i had no option because over 50+ jobs wouldnt hire me or call me) and i have to have food assistance along with my disabled grandpa and my mentally autistic and adhd fiancé who now lives here. He luckily works at a grocery store for extra where we met and he draws less than me in disability. I have to constantly do my best to stock up in everything from my dogs dog food, to laundry detergent, to shampoos and soaps because you never know when the tax payers, rich or government will stop helping you. So i dont dare like to hear oh just do “this and that for work or money” not everyone has the same options. Not everyone is qualified enough for these workplaces or they dont want to hire or help. Plus i take care of everyone in the house (including my dog) first. God bless these parents for trying at least!

Food stamps and benefits should be based on wage NOT total income. You mean to tell me that someone who makes $7.25 an hour and works 70 hours a week doesn’t qualify for food stamps but someone who makes $15 an hour and works 30 hours a week does?!?? This is penalizing people for sacrificing their time to take care of themselves and family. Also, for everyone commenting like”she doesn’t look like she’s missed any meals” it is public knowledge now that foods like breads, simple carbs, and sugars don’t sustain you for long and result in you eating more than you should resulting in weight gain. As someone who spent a year of my life homeless(living in a 1974 metal vehicle) and getting ZERO benefits because I couldn’t prove residency, and was unaware of other programs, I can say I don’t feel sorry for many people, there are items in this house that simply should not have been purchased(assuming they were not gifts but even if they were the family should say”no we don’t need toys we need money and food) Life isn’t always easy, but the poor decisions we make make it more difficult than it has to be. It should be given the problems people bring upon themselves by choosing to take on debt. It also doesn’t help that we have a system that is designed to keep poor people poor, That encourages the breakup of families, and rewards poor selfish decisions. A system that taxes the rich not to simply help the society, but taxes the rich to subsidize the poor life decisions of the poor. Children cost money, and it goes against everything Darwin taught about survival of the fittest and natural selection to support families who have too many kids, single mothers who continue having kids. We should want to help each other, but there is a line between helping someone in need and subsidizing a person who over their lifespan has a negative cash flow.

Poor families need sponsorship. Rich people can give and use it as a tax right off

Shes doing her best. You cant ignore starving people.

It is time for this family to learn how to grow their own food. They will eat healthier and it will help them to save money for other household needs.

Bread and butter with lemon kinds to get limited in such condition

ALL THE NASTY COMMENTS NEED TO STOP......THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT LIVING IN THE LAP OF LUXURY.....

Look for a food pantry in your area

Get use to it!

what a travesty for this family to have to pay union dues for a job that barely pays them enough to keep food in their children's stomachs. .shameful. .

My heart just burst with patriotic pride when I looked up & saw a 'billion dollar' stealth bomber, on my way to the food bank yesterday !

You obviously put having a bunch of kids ahead of thinking things through you brought all that on all by yourselves so it's your problem not ours.

these ppl don't managed their money well.

well it's better than me and my mom we went to the store today and bought some bread tomato sause and cereal it's all good though

how the fuck is she sitting on a 1,500 laptop? i feel for anyone hungry, it's horrific and unnecessary in today's world, but wtf

We only get 500 characters. Yes, of course we MUST take care of our truly needy. And my family & I not only do that through our tax money, we also give to 2 local food pantries & huge yearly collections for BSA and others. We give food by the case whenever we can. But there are so many others who need to be taught how to take care of themselves, and/or taught to get out to work. I heard many things in this video that were red-flags. Didn't have money for food THIS WEEK? That's not how to do it.

How can you be soooo fat if youre poor? I dont get it. No food = less kcal = no fat people.

simple greed and apathy fuel this and NOTHING more!!!

People stressing about $300?? The fuck is wrong with this world??

some of the comment here show that poverty even to an extend that borders an starvation is a common thing in the USA. so common that some of the affected people scold those who struggle harder, because they aren't doing everything they're supposed to. i agree that you can do a lot to reduce costs. but isn't it kind of scary that people in the richest country on earth have to struggle so hard just to feed themselves and their families? what has become of prospering?

soo sad there can make more money by selling stuff on ebay or grow vegetables etc.. she is a teacher can make more money by helping kids some suggest with subject

That lady probably ate all the food

Never take handouts!. These people live better than my family, have better cars, better bicycles and equipment. I don't think they know what it's like to feed a family of 4 with $20 for a week. Don't give in. Stay away from government handouts.

yup, so many problems with the methods we have. welfare is so messed up, they penalize you for trying to get out on your own. food pantries are good but are not setup for the volumes that use it. the local one gives out a HUGE quantity per person a few times a year, doesn't make sense to me. if my parents didn't take me in i'd be in the same boat - but without kids

There is no reason for children to be hungry in American. If there is a hungry child, CPS should take them away.

She goes to a food bank yet she has an macbook pro as a laptop? Huge disconnect

How about water fasting one day per week, so that things get sorted in straight direction.

I have never been in a situation where I had struggled with not having enough food, I ALWAYS have more than enough and I’ve never been on any kind of food assistance including food stamps. I always take and get what I need regardless. Of course, to get what you need and want you need to be highly resourceful, clever and fearless :)

this is just my opinion it seems to me she's doing a bunch of complaining when the parent on the blame why did they put themselves in credit card debt if you can't afford it then don't get it and she has a laptop if I had kids that was hungry I'll take that laptop to the pawn shop and get some money to feed my kids

They live in a nice house than mine :/

I felt sorry for her until I saw that 2000 dollar Mac Pro laptop she uses to write her " blog " .......🤔

She certainly looks like she’s taking in enough calories

Hmmm

DJECA NISU DUŽNA TRPJETI SIROMAŠTVO PORADI.LOŠIH ODLUKA NJIHOVIH RODITELJA NI U NAJBOLJIM.TRENUCIMA ŽIVOTA NE MOŽETE ODLUČITI IMATI VEČI BROJ DJECE

you don't get it----need to read and study more about poverty and hunger-

Some motivational people are putting up videos about making money.I watch some of them.

You shouldn't feel ashamed!..It's the norm in America!...We are sending Billions to the middle east to support countries that don't want any part of us...Dick Cheney just admitted that the Iraq War was about exploiting oil....and Pakistan..they appreciate the billions we send them..BS!...not one dime should leave this country until all our good citizens are fed...This is a great example of a beautiful family that is trying to make it...and are ignored...by our politicians.we R unrepresented

The mom sure doesn’t look hungry

if I was at the food bank you were at volunteering I would have probably gave you a box if they have dried goods in boxes the food bank you went to because the food bank I volunteer at if you were late oh btw the food bank I volunteer at doesnt have a number of new people or families that they allow at a time we just accept them all anyway if you show up late at the time we're taking things down me and the other volunteers just like oh no you're fine and help thats how all food bank should be in my opinion but of course I dont know why your food bank does that the same food bank we volunteer at is also the same one we get our food from your food bank could have their reasons for why they do it whats the food pantry called where you live I can search it up on the internet and look into why they do that there sorry for what happened to you I hope you're have a better year this year and a very bright future ahead of you you have an amazing day may you and your be blessed :)

I help at a church food pantry and I've never heard of anybody getting turned away matter fact we have more food than people at times we have people leave the pantry with two banana boxes full of meat because we get so much donations from Walmart and Kroger that we usually have seven freezers full of meat plus we get produce vegetables Bread and bakery items from the stores. We have less people coming to the food pantry than we did before the pandemic and large unemployment counts

I noticed she was typing her blog on a laptop that could have been sold for food money. Her kids need to eat. She does not NEED to blog. Yes I know email and Internet access is pretty much a necessity these days but most libraries offer that for free. She could have sold the laptop for food money. I don't think she was really starving. She probably had food in the house, just stuff she really didn't want to cook and/or eat.

*hungry

there is NOT hunger in USA ... just lack of individual responsibility. Punish the parents. I suggestion work camps for irresponsible breeders. Just my opinion.

Feeding Juan is feeding Jamal, then the Christian Race suffers.

she doesnt look hungry, not trying to be mean and nasty but just honest...

and you dont rally look like your starving either

just use Zaka in your society (Islamic system) if the rich give a percent of their money no one would be in this situation it is truly unfortunate. My prayer is with you.

some of you are so mean, sell her lap top, get rid of internet, how about sending her some money or gift cards to a supper market for her to feed her family.

she has a lot of adipose. she'll live.

The mother seems to be well-fed.

If you were born poor is not your fault, if you died poor it is your fault. Stop complaining and change your mindset.

She can’t be that poor with an American girl doll in the background.

oh man she says she has no money for food this week????LMFAO....i get 16 a month 4 food stamps so have to use ny disability to buy food i lowered my bills very low heat in winter and no ac in summer and only shower maybe once every 2 months or so and buy alot of 10/10 when grocery shopping and i wont be getting 3k per kid at tax time in Pa and she has a hubby i have no1 she should be happy and yes im freakin huingry now damn it

I don't believe her. too many excuses

The more I see these "hunger" VIDS the more I support labor camps.

grow a garden and go vegan