I'm putting this in this forum because I think it fits here best - this is an issue of poverty, which is an economic issue.

quote:

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One day last week, moments after the blue delivery van arrived at the Sheltering Arms Pool in Harlem, Carol Williams zigzagged through a gathering crowd to snap up two white paper lunch bags for her grandchildren, Devon, 4, and Jordan, 8 months. “We saw the sign for free lunch, so we came,” said Ms. Williams, who lives blocks away in the Manhattanville neighborhood. “We’re going to be here every day.” The meals are intended for ages 18 and under, the schools say.

At the Queens Library in Long Island City, Julissa Jara calculated that she would save $150 each month on chicken, rice and beans by bringing her 9-year-old daughter, Sabina, for a free lunch each day.

“This helps me with my financials,” Ms. Jara said, while Sabina nibbled on a peach. “I need the money to buy other things.”

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I'm not crazy about soup kitchens replacing social justice initiatives like paying proper wages to everyone and raising welfare rates to a livable wage.

But one thing I do support is universal school breakfast and lunch programs since all children get fed by them, not just poor kids. I wish more schools in the Toronto area had those. I'd happily pay more taxes so that my son could have breakfast and lunch at school, as opposed to me trying to pack something healthy that won't spoil in three or four hours.

And these programs (breakfast and lunch) are much more prevalent in the US than in Canada, I think. So it must be difficult in the summer for those families who depend on the breakfast and lunch programs during the school year to suddenly be faced with having their food budget go way up. It's good to see this happening.