Read Full Article in Virginia Mercury
Richmond resident Asia Broadie is juggling being a single parent, a restaurant worker and a nursing assistant student whose apartment rent absorbs much of her income. On Monday in Capitol Square, alongside U.S. Rep. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, and state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Richmond, Brody said the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is essential for keeping food on her family’s plates.
Broadie shared her insights as the lawmakers vowed to shoulder forthcoming federal changes to SNAP — which critics say could result in people getting less food assistance or dropping off the program entirely —as best they can.
After a Republican majority in Congress passed a major reconciliation bill this summer, states are expected to potentially absorb additional costs for SNAP, and will likely impose additional verification requirements for recipients.
A recent analysis from Voices for Virginia’s Children estimates nearly 447,000 families are at risk of losing at least some of their SNAP benefits.
“They frame us as lazy people, mooching off the government,” Broadie said of Republicans in Congress and others who support the SNAP rollback. “But I work full time plus I go to school.”
Ensuring her children are well-fed helps them focus better in school, Broadie added. She would like for them to be on track to pursue their dream careers someday. As for her own future, she hopes she can someday buy a house that she can pass down to them.
Another speaker at Monday’s event, The Market at 25th CEO Derek Houston, emphasized how SNAP doesn’t just enable income-challenged families’ access to healthy foods, but also boosts the grocery stores that serve them.
Church Hill, eastern and southern parts of Richmond had been identified as “food deserts.” The term describes an area where there are no grocery stores nearby and residents have to travel further to shop or rely on less nutritious and highly processed foods most often found in bodegas or gas stations. The lack of a local grocery store often correlates with some combination of either low density, low-income residents or the lingering effects of racial redlining — a historic practice that excluded or prevented Black families from living in certain areas.