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April 26th, 2016  |  Published in Uncategorized

The needy speak: On the bus to Albany

By Raquel Wildes and Gema Flores

It was still dark out when they loaded on the bus, stomachs warm from the morning coffee, whispers of anxiety and excitement exchanged among the members of Neighbors Together soup kitchen, as they rolled along I-87 North from Brooklyn to Albany, eager to meet the legislators who represent them.

It was one woman’s first time in a governmental building that wasn’t run by law enforcement. But others had been to Albany before and considered themselves expert lobbyists, dressed in their Sunday best and prepared to plead their case.

Neighbors Together feeds an average of 400 people per day in three of the lowest income neighborhoods in New YorkBedford-Stuyvesant, Ocean Hill and Brownsvillein a cafe-style setting. Since 1982, they’ve provided lunch and dinner Monday through Thursday, with an additional dinner Friday evenings and a special breakfast for seniors on Friday mornings. A majority of their food funding comes from government run emergency food programs at the federal, state and local levels. Neighbors Together serves approximately 70 percent men and 30 women on a regular basis, a majority of whom are adults, with fewer children and seniors. Many of the volunteers who help with cooking and service are people who eat there themselves. 

They fight hunger with a three-pronged approach: the cafe program for immediate needs, an empowerment program to alleviate the root causes of hunger and poverty—help with resumes, SNAP applications, legal services, and moreand a community action program for long term goals, with a heavy focus on advocacy.

Food insecurity exists in every community across New York State, with 9.6 million people threatened by hunger. The goal of the Albany trip was to ask legislators to increase funding for initiatives that could help them inch their way out of poverty, including the Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program (HPNAP), which distributes money to emergency food relief organizations throughout New York State. Governor Andrew Cuomo suggested allocating $34.5 million to HPNAP, up $4.5 million from last year, but food lobbyists are pushing for an additional $16.5 million in funding. With that, they believe they can close the meal gap of 485 million meals annually, the total number of meals New York residents miss per year.

The trip to Albany was intended to kick-start to a new Leadership Development Series. “There’s always more work to be done,” Amy Blumsack, the campaign officer at Neighbors Together, told a group of recipients—called members by the Neighbors Together staff—at a lobbying preparatory meeting the day before.

At the meeting, the Neighbors Together staff went over the logistics for the day—don’t be late, be respectful—and lobbying tactics—be specific about your requests, come prepared.

“By April 1st, the state legislature will have outlined a budget, and we’re going to Albany to tell them how to spend our money and to tell them what our priorities are,” said Blumsack. She rattled off some advice:

“You’re all experts because you live these experiences.”

“Don’t be shy or intimidated.”

“Passion is important, but don’t get too heated that you get angry.”

And,  “Remember you are representing a lot of people who can’t come to Albany, so don’t ask personal questions.”

***

Members returned the next morning at 6:15 to catch the bus. They were greeted with pots of coffee and brown paper bags filled with a banana, a Rice Krispie Treat, a bagel with either peanut butter, cream cheese or both, and a Nature Valley granola bar. No bag was exactly the same, and some were missing one or two components. There were apples on the bus.

Sandro Ortega, the chef, was the last to get on the bus. A stark-looking man with a superman logo on his shirt, earrings and wallet, Ortega did not feel invincible that day. He doesn’t think going to Albany is worth the effort, because he doesn’t think the representatives pay attention to lobbyists like himself. But that hasn’t stopped him from coming along on almost every trip since he started working at Neighbors Together seven years ago.

After losing his job at a Nathan’s fast food branch, Ortega found this new position through the Hope Program—a group that empowers New Yorkers living in poverty to achieve economic self-sufficiency through employment—and also happens to be a partner organization of Neighbors Together. When Ortega first started at Neighbors Together, it was difficult for him to encounter people dealing with such deep poverty, but now he considers himself part of this community and feels good to be able to give back.

Ortega eats with people coping with poverty five days a week, and on Christmas, Thanksgiving and, if they have funds, some weekends, too. The only times they are closed is if they have a special event, like the Albany trip, or if Ortega needs to take a day off. “When I’m sick, and I’m not able to come to Neighbors Together, I feel both physical and emotional pain,” Ortega said. He feels guilty that people will be struggling to find a meal while he is away from the kitchen—especially since he’s dejected by the political advocacy process.

James Dean, on the other hand, was giddy with excitement. The older African American man and Brooklyn native was making his 23rd trip to Albany, and he had already planned on coming back in two weeks with another organization. He was wearing a black velvet sport jacket with a pair of faded black slacks, a purple dress shirt and black tie. He had two pins on his lapel: one in support of breast cancer survivors and one for VOCAL, a grassroots organization for low-income people that was also in the Capitol building that day.

“I’m missing a meal today to come to Albany,” said James Dean, who likes people to call him by his full name. “That’s how important this day is.” The soup kitchen he usually visits for breakfast was closed because it no longer has the resources to serve two meals a day, and didn’t serve breakfast the morning of the trip.

At around 11 in the morning, the group arrived at Westminster Presbyterian Church, a short walk from the Capitol building. A room was ready for them with coffee and tea set out, so they split into groups based on key issues each member wanted to discuss, because each group would have limited time with their legislators, and needed to be specific about their message. “We’re driving for eight hours to talk to our legislators for 20 minutes. You must be here for a reason,” Blumsack said. “What’s important to you?”

They strategized—who would share a personal story, who would introduce a new bill, and who felt comfortable articulating the solution of progressive taxation (including permanently extending the Millionaire’s Tax, which is set to expire in 2017), if a legislator asked where additional funding would come from. James Dean volunteered to do it all. He was going to be his group’s leader and introduce them and the legislation they hoped to pass.

His group wanted to talk about a range of issues: hunger, homelessness, education access, minimum wage and public assistance. Most of the members wanted to talk about housing-related legislation. “The root causes of hunger are housing, lack of jobs, low wages, etc.,” said Denny Marsh, the executive director of Neighbors Together. “Hunger is a consequence.”

Everyone seemed to have a very clear vision about what they wanted to speak about, except for Ortega, but since he works in a soup kitchen, and knows first-hand how difficult it is to cope with a limited budget, he planned to ask the legislators to raise the soup kitchen and pantry allowance.

The Hunger Action Networkan organization whose goal is to end hunger and its root causes in New York Statesponsored a lunch of cheese balls, chips, bananas, oranges and four different sandwiches: curry tuna, peanut butter and jelly, turkey, and cheese. Attendees were asked to wait until everyone had taken a first sandwich before taking more; some listened, others didn’t.

After lunch, the groups lined up to walk to the Capitol building, carrying signs that read “How Do You Decide Between Rent and Food?” “Food is a Human Right,” and “Make Better Budget Choices.”

“We keep coming back for a reason—so these days are obviously effective in instigating change to some extent,” said Marsh, “but there’s more to it than just that. Our members rarely get a chance to get out of the city, to stand before their legislatures and to feel like their voices truly matter. This day builds morale for us as an organization and empowers our members individually.” So far, the turnout for the Leadership Development Series has been “good,” Blumsack said, which is an indicator of the momentum that the Albany trip creates.

Once the group got past security, a process that usually takes quite some time, they went straight to the war room—the space outside Governor Cuomo’s office, where lobbyists traditionally gather to rally support for their causes—and assembled into a circle around Susan Zimet, the executive director of New York Coalition Against Hunger, a nonprofit organization that aims to help society move beyond the soup kitchen. “We’re gathered here today to fight for equal opportunity for everyone to live a life of dignity free from hunger and free from homelessness,” Zimet said.

One by one, participants stepped into the middle of the circle to share their story, gaining confidence as their colleagues cheered them on, before moving along to their scheduled appointments.

One group was on its way to meet Senator Martin Dilan in his office when they saw him in the corridor, walking in the opposite direction. “This is how important we are to them—he knows that we’re coming to meet him, and he’s leaving now,” Ortega said. Instead, they met with one of Senator Dilan’s staffers.

The group leader introduced Neighbors Together and laid out their objectives for the day: to enact legislative change that will enhance emergency food relief in addition to supplementary funding for other related issues, such as the shelter allowance. Then, each of the five members in that group shared their story, along with direct pleas for legislation that would improve their living conditions. Ortega asked for increased funds to be provided to soup kitchens. Philip asked to raise minimum wage to $15 per hour. As the group was leaving, Senator Dilan came back, said he would look over the notes from the meeting, and took a photo with the group.

A majority of Neighbors Together’s appointments that day were with legislative assistants, to the disappointment of the members who thought they would be able to meet their representatives personally. But at the same time, many members found it satisfying to spell out their rights in the bureaucratic halls of the Capitol building.

The day was full of mixed emotions – optimism and disappointment – and by the time it was over, exhaustion. After her first meeting, one member wandered off into a random legislator’s room when she spotted a water cooler by the front desk, and asked for a cup of water. She was hungry and dehydrated. The day was long and they still had another appointment to attend.

***

The week after the trip to Albany, the group met at Neighbors Together for a follow-up session. The walls were covered with poster-sized papers to fill in, together, as they discussed the successes of the trip, and what could be improved for next year.

“Next time I want to be better prepared and keep focused on my talking points,” said Mark, a member who also co-founded a nonprofit for kids in the Brownsville neighborhood. It was his first time in Albany, but this was just the beginning of what he hopes will be a life of political action, like James Dean’s.  

By the end, the blank papers on the walls were filled with notes.

Ortega didn’t participate in the meeting. He was too busy organizing dinner and tidying up the kitchen.

***

Budgetary Update: The 2016-2017 state budget, finalized on April 1, increased baseline funding for HPNAP by $4.5 million to $34.5 million, according to Governor Cuomo’s recommendation, with an annual funding commitment for the next five years, and a $500,000 one-year add-on for the coming budget year.

Also as of April 1st, Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents (ABAWD) — people between the ages of 18 and 49 without any dependents who are able to work — will lose their SNAP benefits unless they are employed, resulting in the loss of an additional 31 million meals over the course of the year. While SNAP funding is decided at the federal level, states are able to enact ABAWD restrictions based on local unemployment rates, and it is state governments that will be burdened by this additional meal gap.

Neighbors Together is currently asking individual members to write out their personal stories as they relate to SNAP cuts — on a paper plate.  Once they’ve collected 100 plates, they are going to mail them to their Congressional representatives, along with a letter outlining steps they can take to fight against the SNAP cuts. 

 

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