In one of the nation's poorest counties, food stamp cuts are hitting residents harder than most. The
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- Опубликовано: 18 окт 2024
- (10 Jan 2014) Rosanna Troyer is coping with the drop in her federal food assistance from $367 to $303 by cutting back on meat purchases and buying more canned goods and macaroni and cheese.
Her 12-year-old daughter is already sick of the hot dogs they've been eating frequently at their home in Owsley County, which has the lowest median household income of any U.S. county outside Puerto Rico.
Troyer is one of the more than 47 million Americans who receive food stamps, all of whom saw their allotment drop on Nov. 1 as a temporary benefit from the 2009 economic stimulus ran out. Few places feel the difference as profoundly as Owsley County, an overwhelmingly white and Republican area whose own representative in Congress voted against renewing the benefit.
The drop came ahead of the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson's call for a "War on Poverty," an initiative aimed at expanding the government's role in education and health care as poverty reduction strategies. The food stamp program grew out the initiative Johnson launched with his Jan 8, 1964 speech.
The programs played a role in bringing Owsley County and other parts of Appalachia out of what has been described as "third-world conditions" where people died of starvation, said Jason Bailey, director of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy in Frankfort.
Across Kentucky, nearly 900,000 people who need food stamps saw a proposed cut of $40 billion from the food stamp program, also known Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. And, with the cut in benefits, it appears the gap will widen, particularly in a place like Owsley County in a rural, poor area in Kentucky's Appalachian foothills, said Jason Dunn, director of the Division of Family Support for the Kentucky Cabinet of Health and Family Services.
Owlsey County, home to 4,722 residents, is poor even by Appalachian standards. Its median household income of $19,351 is the lowest outside of Puerto Rico, according to census results. The county is more than 99 percent white.
In 2009, the last year available, government benefits accounted for 53.07% of personal income.
Over 41 percent of residents _ four in 10 _ fall below the poverty line. In 2011, the most recent year available, 52 percent received food stamps.
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Why don't they pull themselves up by their bootstraps.
Cindy Windy Foreal 😉
This county has never voted for a Democratic candidate for president. Not once. Says something...
How’s them bootstraps pulling up for ya so far?
OUCH!! That really hurt!
They vote GOP. The GOP consistently votes to cut programs that help these people.
Programs never "help" the poor. They only perpetuate poverty. The poor must teach their children to get off Welfare, and succeed through hard work and personal initiative.
Totally agree with the idea that people need to get work but these people can't find any. Taking away their welfare and moralising to them about the importance of work ethic isn't going to help them. Sometimes and in some places there just is none. Nobody needs these people to do anything.
@@owenbrady5313 i have worked there,they have no where to work,great people indeed,loved working there.
@@davidlafleche1142 Lmao hard work and personal initiative. Are you trying to insult these people? I'm sure they're much harder working than you are. There are just no jobs available in these rural Appalachian counties. Blame the politicians for raping these areas of natural resources then abandoning them the second things get tough.
BUT YOULL STILL VOTE GOP
Just like poor blacks keep voting Dem.
America is the wealthiest nation in the history of the world and yet it CHOOSES to not feed and care for its own people.
C Robinson these lazy bums need to work and feed their lazy fat asses instead of being leeches on my tax dollars
@@xiyia2013 They work harder than you will ever know and are still proud and kind which you know nothing about.
what exactly are you referring that "which I will never know about"?
Second thought I dont want to know about anything from these tax payer's tax dollars parasites........except letters of gratitude for the food stamps, feed housing and medical insurance that I pay for in which neither I or my family never get to enjoy.
This is so very sad. I have kin folk in this area. They’re just getting by and people trade and share their food. The people living in Owsley Co, the poorest county outside the Rez, don’t deserve such harsh treatment by their state but these people keep voting for their problems. They need a hands up instead of small handouts.
Where is this "great" American dream everyone talks about? Hmmm
Stardust Dreams the population in the county is 98% white and if you don’t like it go some where else that’s better
They shouldn’t complain that the government isn’t giving them enough money if you want to buy expensive things get a job
This is sicking to watch as an Army combat veteran. How in the world we have this going on in America. This isn't a race thing it's a human being thing. Where the hell is MITCH at. I am a black American we must unite and stop voting against our best interest.
Welfare the white secret by time magazine is a old but still relevant article.
They need to stop sending their money to pat robertson
But you still vote REPUBLICAN!!!
rott heimer what makes them facts? cause u said it? typical troglodyte.
It's the strangest...Why would anyone vote against their own interests?
rott heimer only parasites I see are these people, 96 percent of people in here are on food stamps.........
that is according to your logic
Peter Nouveaux you do know the Caucasian leads the race in food stamps?
what self entitlement BS is this? You do realize that the youth nonwhite working minority will be supporting non-productive old age white people for the next 30 years right? That means your food stamps will be paid for by nonwhite workers. What do you think happen when these nonwhite minority workers say enough is enough and vote to end food stamps handout?
so move to where the jobs are. no jobs = hell hole
Move with what money? When you're poor, you can't just pick up and go.
Rude awaking huh
You voted for it and you can always move. No empathy here.
this is the best woman in booneville she really helps people
I went to Owsley County for four summers (1988, 89, 90, 92) with my Presbyterian Church youth group to do mission work. Very friendly, honest and hardworking people who don't want charity but are in the cycle of poverty. The late Rev. Joe Powlas ministered three churches (Booneville Presbyterian, Cow Creek, Indian Creek) for four decades and was one of the greatest people I ever knew.
i have worked in owsley county,they are wonderful people..
Annual reduction in SNAP amount = 12x(367-303) = 768
Number of SNAP recipients = 52% of 4461 (Wikipedia) = 2320.
Cost of restoring Owsley County SNAP to status quo ante = 768x2320 = $1.78M.
That is pocket change the state of Kentucky can easily afford. Kentucky has about 15 counties that are severely poor in a way similar to Owsley County. The cost to the Kentucky tax payer of bringing their food stamp amounts back to the 2014 level probably would not exceed 30M/year.
Move.
The most recent data to date are for 2014. In that year, two counties were even poorer than OwsleyCo. KY: Holmes Co. MS and Buffalo Co, SD. Holmes is 84% AA. Buffalo is 84% Native American and has only 2100 inhabitants. Owsley is lily white.
Of the 14 poorest counties in the USA, ranked by median household income, 6 were in Appalachian Kentucky and 1 was in WV, hard by the Kentucky border. Of the 7 counties where median income was under 25K/year, 3 are in Kentucky and 1 in WV.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lowest-income_counties_in_the_United_States#100_poorest_counties.2Fparishes_by_median_household_income
THE PEOPLE LOOK FAT FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE....
Because bad food is cheaper and easier to store than fresh produce.
America!!.... Where even the poor people are fat.
Shout out from Berea, Kentucky.
Where is this?
Nadea Williams Kentucky one of the poorest states in the Union and is represented by Republican Mitch McConnell one of the richest politicians in DC
PLEASE SOMEONE teach coupoms
Ahhhhhhh look at this lmao
the 3 big jobs for the town were coal Tabaco and lumber, all 3 are gone, why, DEMOCRATS
Coal is dying because it is vastly dirtier than fracked natural gas. Burning coal is incompatible with concern about climate change. But killing coal has dire consequences for Kentucky and West Virginia.
kevin mcshane democrats this county never votes democrat and neither dose Kentucky. And besides no one buys coal, tobacco is so dangerous.
kevin mcshane you're right.
It's them damn democrats fault it's no more trees after they were all cut down.
If it wasn't for them dumb democrats, we'd be able to keep harvesting trees and coal for all eternity!!
kevin mcshane they obsolete
No excuses, no not the democrats, they're all just lazy, good for nothing parasites leaching off my tax money.
I hope Trump's food box idea motivates them to get off of their fat nasty dirty funky added to get a job and actually become a full active member of the working class instead of buying slurppes and snickers with food stamps.