Anti-Hunger Advocates Could Improve Support for the Farm Bill by Learning from "Moral Mondays"

While the "Moral Mondays" movement in North Carolina may not list the renewal of Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP or Food Stamps) as one of the group's concerns you can bet this group would press for removing cuts to the Federal food assistance programs.

Hunger advocates who advocate for full funding of the SNAP program in the Farm Bill may benefit by taking a page from the Moral Mondays movement, which has been making lots of noise.

National and state legislators like those in North Carolina, Kansas and Missouri have reacted so severely to programs that provide services for low-income and poor people that many could lose unemployment benefits, health services, or food assistance.

One way you can make a difference is to press your U.S. representative or senator to fully-fund the SNAP program. With legislators back in their home districts there may be opportunity to meet in-person with the legislators.

Brett Weisel, Director for Advocacy with Feeding America based in Washington DC, suggested several ways for anti-hunger advocates to make a difference during a web meeting he hosted on August 7. 

He provided an overview of the 2 Farm Bills deliberation -- one passed by the Senate cuts $4 billion from SNAP over 10 years. The House version, which proposed $20 billion in cuts over the same period, was defeated.

Then he invited meeting participants to visit with legislators during the August legislative recess, write letters to the editors, among other advocacy tactics. 

When asked if anti-hunger advocates could learn from the Moral Mondays movement he indicated he was unfamiliar with the group -- a bit of a surprise given that Washington DC is only 250 miles from Raleigh, North Carolina, where the protests have occurred. 

And time is of the essence since the current Farm Bill expires September 30, 2013.

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