The Brink

I often wonder why so many of us look with disdain instead of compassion on the most vulnerable among us. Food, clothing, and shelter are among the most basic necessities for the survival of any human being in this world. Yet, in a country as rich as ours, these necessities are increasingly out of reach for the most vulnerable Americans. And too often, they are met not with mercy, but with a particular brand of social stigma and cruelty hiding behind the idea of ‘merit’ that effectively kicks the needy when they’re already down.

The idea of the undeserving poor has been around for a long time. Ronald Reagan famously warned us all back in 1976 about hordes of ‘welfare queens’ living a carefree existence off of the backs of the American taxpayer. Twenty years later, Republican president Bill Clinton signed the ‘Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act’ into law in 1996, enacting work requirements upon welfare programs – even for single mothers without access to adequate and affordable childcare. Despite Reagan’s welfare queens being soundly debunked (fraud among welfare recipients is less than two percent), the mythology of the grifting poor remains.

Of course there will always be those who try to exploit the system, but do they make up the majority of people needing help? It may come as a surprise for many to learn that the majority of SNAP (food stamp) benefit recipients are employed. They have jobs. Why are they receiving public assistance? Because even though fully employed, wages still fall far enough below the poverty threshold to qualify for public assistance. Walmart even goes so far as to assist employees with applying for this assistance – while making $680 billion last year, a 5% increase over the previous year. There are undeserving fraudsters here, but they aren’t the ones applying for public assistance.

As I write this, America has just suffered the longest government shutdown in our nation’s history. Low-income Americans were held for ransom by this Republican-controlled government, their SNAP benefits being halted. Eight Democrats sided with Republicans to end the shutdown, ending low-cost health insurance for vulnerable citizens, instead. And the narrative from the right continues to push the same tired, old stereotype from the Reagan years: Poor people are just lazy, and looking for handouts. Social media continues to be rife with ridicule and contempt for the people struggling most in an increasingly difficult economy. The lack of human decency and compassion is staggering.

It does not diminish us, as human beings, to help those who need it. One can question their morals, their choices, their dress or their lifestyle all one wants, but at the end of the day, they are still human beings in need of help. Helping them makes you a better person, and better people are what we desperately need in these uncertain times.