Our Statement on Work Requirements for ABAWD
Since the controversial Work Requirements legislation has been proposed, there have been a lot of voices chiming in to argue its efficacy and humanity. We believe it is important to include the voices of our community members in Chicago who have applied for SNAP in this debate. Below is a statement we submitted to the Federal Register, in collaboration with some of our users, regarding the real, devastating impact of this new policy.
The great Johnnie Tillmon once wrote in “Welfare is a Women’s Issue”, “There is no dignity in starvation. Nobody denies, least of all poor women, that there is dignity and satisfaction in being able to support your kids through honest labor. We wish we could do it. The problem is that our country's economic policies deny the dignity and satisfaction of self-sufficiency to millions of people—the millions who suffer everyday in underpaid dirty jobs—and still don't have enough to survive.”
In 1972 and still today the state of economic inequality in America denies dignity and work opportunity to many, while entrenching the wealthy with an unparalleled advantage at the expense of the society’s most vulnerable. In 2016, the top 20% of the US population owned 93% of America’s wealth, leaving just 7% for the rest of the country. Today and everyday, we stand with those on SNAP to debunk mythology that the people who participate in the SNAP program are radically different than the people who work in the formal or informal economy.
We reject this Executive Order which is an affront to the legislative process that would threaten assistance for 755,000 Americans by making it even harder for unemployed and underemployed workers to access SNAP. We demand that food should be recognized as a human right for all Americans and elevate the voices of SNAP eligible Americans who also oppose work requirements.
At mRelief a nonprofit whose mission is to restore dignity by transforming access to social services, we surveyed more than 7500 Chicagoans who used our platform to connect to SNAP or other public supports about the SNAP program. We invited two dozen to participate in a discussion where they shared about the challenges and opportunities. As a part of that discussion, some shared information about their sentiments on the SNAP fiat which is an attempt to slash the nation’s largest food assistance program with work requirements. Here is what they said:
“State and government need to change the guidelines with Link, allow people to work and keep your Link [SNAP] card by changing income bracket.” - A Chicagoan Committed to Changing SNAP for the Better
“It would be hard to get to SNAP offices and stuff because it takes a while to get there.” says another SNAP applicant about the burdensome nature of the verification process. They continue: “There are many things that can prevent people from getting jobs too...”
Another concerned Chicagoan said as follows: “Trump’s ‘plans’ to require those on or seeking to be on SNAP benefits is too broad and does not consider the circumstances that may prevent people from making a livable wage. Many people have mental illnesses (not physical disabilities) that prevent them from holding a job. Some people have had experiences with felony or misdemeanor - even some greater than 10 years ago and get precluded from some jobs.”
Another voice on work requirements shares: “It is tough out there. They don’t [know] what things cost. It doesn’t consider people who have a record...If they don’t see your disability on the outside, they don’t get it. Don’t discriminate and take away the things that we have. This President wants to take everything away from us. People don’t have confidence...people didn’t go to school and don’t have skills.”
Finally, another SNAP eligible Chicagoan shared as follows: “I feel it is unreasonable for the US government to insist people to work in order to receive assistance via Link/SNAP. I feel most people prefer NOT having to rely on any type of assistance. What about the mentally challenged people?”
Signed,
The mRelief Team and Our SNAP Community
