There are many excuses we give for why hunger is allowed to exist. You have probably heard these before… People saying that if only a person worked harder or were able to stop using drugs, then their hunger would go away. The problem is that it isn’t true. There are plenty of people who work hard everyday and still experience food insecurity. There are plenty of people who don’t work hard - or don’t work at all- and never have experienced the pains of hunger.
People like Charlie Sheen have and Robert Downey Jr. have struggled with addiction, but the economy keeps them in their beautiful homes. Addiction doesn’t know income level and wealth, but hunger does.
People Profit from Hunger
Hunger is a political choice we have made as a society. The reality is it is profitable in our economy for some if others are in economic desperation. Simply put, hungry people and people working like hell to avoid hunger will go that extra mile, not report abusive bosses, or demand safer or healthier work conditions. Too often in restaurants people are fighting their colleagues for the best shifts to guarantee their tips can meet their household needs. Matthew Desmond in his book Poverty By America goes into great detail on how it is in the interest of some to keep a segment of our population desperate.
We can build a new economy:
Unemployment: Simply put, Ohio and the nation could adjust this if we prioritize human dignity over profit. Efforts to guarantee everyone basic housing, food, education, and healthcare will create an economy that is much more efficient and effective. For example, if you lose your job, a lack of a social safety net forces you to accept a new job quickly. Is it what you are good at? No. Is it what you are passionate about? Probably not. It also is costly to the business that hires you because you are likely to be ineffective, inefficient, and leave after 6 months - forcing them to hire and train somebody else. Instead, a social safety net that gives us all a bit of breathing room in crisis situations will allow our economy to be stronger in the long run.
Education: More and more employment requires post-high school training or education. As I tell my high school child, what you study is a morally neutral choice. Whether you study atomic physics or plumbing, you need those skills. Sadly, our educational system is set up to move low-income students into plumbing and wealthy students into atomic physics - even if their skillset and passions are not there. Again, this leads to ineffective markets. A public commitment to equity and adequacy in k-12 education and meaningful pathways through higher education (training and certification programs or PhD’s) that do not leave students burdened with debt will similarly guarantee that all receive their daily bread.
Why don’t we fix it?
Those who profit from the current system fight to defend it. But there are many others who no longer care. Many of them did at one point in time, and probably want to again, but the acceptance of hunger has become the norm.
In the Gospel of Luke we hear the story of the rich man and Lazarus who die. The rich man had been apathetic to the pleas of Lazarus who begged at his gate. That was his sin - apathy.
After worship yesterday I gathered at the Columbus CROP Walk to see hundreds of people step off to walk to end hunger. As they prepared to leave, we encouraged all the walkers to share the story of hunger with somebody everyday. Only when we break through the apathy to hunger in society will we be able to solve it.
There are many solutions - Food banks, school meals, more workforce training, targeted tax credits for families, and much more. It is not about the government providing handouts and charity, but correcting an economy that allows the dignity of our neighbors to be stripped away and replacing with economic guidelines that embrace the world’s abundance and dignity of all.