The Struggle for Food Justice in the city of Bell Gardens, CA

By CYNTHIA RENDÓN
EL NUEVO SOL

Carmen Peraza and about ten volunteers operate a food pantry in Bell Gardens, CA, one of the poorest cities in Los Angeles County, where more than 25% of the population lives below the poverty line. Maria Esther Mejia helps at the pantry, and Araceli Saravia Martiñón periodically assists. In 2002, when the food pantry — named the Nehemiah Project — was initiated at the First Evangelical Covenant Church, the headquarters of the program, around 30 families attended twice a month to receive food. It wasn’t gourmet food by any means (pumpkins, chiles, tomatoes, and other vegetables, rice, milk, beans), but the people appreciated the gift, and the church was able to handle the work with just a handful of dedicated volunteers.

Almost ten years later and the number of people who attend has multiplied, and about 70 families go to Nehemiah every fifteen days. At the beginning of the Project, because of rapidly increasing demand related to the recession, the pantry was able to survive with food that was donated by the members of the church and a donation of $100 given to organizations like WorldVision and Children’s Network International for use of their food warehouses.

The Times, They are a Changin’

In 2008, with demand increasing, the amount of food the federal and state governments supplied dropped by two thirds because of reduced government budgets. The food pantry has tried to provide the same amount of food by receiving donations from church members and local banks. In 2011, however, the picture is much different: the recession has allowed for more people to attend and receive the help of Nehemiah. The economic situation has also affected the Church, where the Missions Committee, the group in charge of the Nehemiah Project, has to survive with just $3000 annually.

Food insecurity is only one part of poverty. Inadequate nutrition all too often is associated with inadequate shelter, lack of health care, and bad education, and poverty is at the core of all. Aníbal Vásquez, the current Senior Pastor of the First Evangelical Covenant Church in Bell Gardens, has found that many who attend Nehemiah have personal and family problems, like mental disorders, substance abuse issues, and domestic conflicts. Some also fear the close reality of being evicted. “If you go to their homes, you’ll see that they live in the lowest livable conditions. Families have even had to separate because they can’t afford bigger places to live,” says Pastor Vásquez.

The National Picture Mirrors the Case Study

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) defines food insecurity in households as the “limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways.” The amount of households that are food-insecure in the United States increased from 11.1% to 14.7% between 2007 and 2009. The numbers increase in Los Angeles County, with 36.3% of adults that don’t have food security. These proportions were recorded as the highest level of food insecurity since the Food and Drug Administration in the U.S. began its annual survey in 1995. And while poverty and hunger in the United States is not as severe as the hunger that occurs in places like Ethiopia, the kind of “hunger” that is typical for a family in the U.S. can be described as a family that “gets SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits or a wage check, but they still have to skimp on groceries, and they run out of food around the 20th or the 25th of the month,” explains Evelmyn Ivens, a Church Relations coordinator for Bread for the World, a Christian non-profit organization focused on eradicating hunger worldwide.

In November 2009, just before Thanksgiving, the White House stated that “hunger rose significantly last year.” They observed that 49 million Americans lacked access to adequate food. Food pantries, such as Project Nehemiah, are in high demand during the current deep recession. People begin to line-up three hours before the actual food distribution takes place just to avoid the prospect of not bringing two bags of food home to their families.

Philanthropy: The Nonprofit Role

In times of need, people have historically turned to faith-based organizations; many food pantries are faith based. Nearly 3000 providers serve the homeless in America, 53% of them church affiliated, according to a nutrition and health survey. Many religions have a moral code, including assisting those in need, or “a duty to give. . . . Giving to charity is neither charitable nor generous; it is no more than our duty and not giving would be wrong,” says Peter Singer, a well-known ethics professor. This ethical code prompts faith-based organizations such as the Nehemiah Project to give provisions to local people in need. Tomas Ivens, the founder of the Nehemiah Project, says that it was the happenings occurring around the Church that prompted and inspired him to try to change the lives of the people in need.

Secular groups provide the other half of the necessary food and other parts of the safety net. In Los Angeles, for example, a secular organization, PolicyLink offers programs for the needy. Judith Bell, president of the organization, argues that religious organizations that hope to help the hungry, “have a powerful voice for social justice and a powerful voice for change.”

And what happens to families who suffer from food insecurity? How are these people able to ingest enough nutrients to function at their best and maintain optimal health? Unfortunately, a more nutritious diet — one that includes lots of fruits and vegetables, lean meats, fish and cereals — is beyond the reach of many poor Americans. One of the reasons is the “urban jungle”: people live in neighborhoods that are considered “food deserts”, which means that they don’t have a well-stocked supermarket at their disposal, and have no money to pay for food that should be included in a balanced diet. “Food-insecure families buy bad, cheap food, and  it does such great harm to their health,” confirms Evelmyn Ivens.

A Disparity

“A study led by Adam Drewnowski, an epidemiologist at the University of Washington, showed how specific food prices changed between 2004 and 2008 based on data from supermarkets in the Seattle area. The researchers found that food prices in general rose 25%, more nutritious foods (red peppers, raw oysters, spinach, mustard greens, romaine lettuce) increased by 29%, while less nutritious foods (white sugar , hard candies, jelly beans, and tail) increased by only 16%.”

Getting hungrier and fatter at the same time

Corpulence, or being “fat”, “chunky” or “plump”, which at one time was a symbol of prosperity of a few, has now become a marker of poverty. Obesity has increased as the income gap has increased: over a third of U.S. adults, and more specifically, 31% of California adults with low incomes are obese. Latinos have a higher incidence of obesity, with the Latino population in the U.S. being 1.2 times more likely to be obese. Dr. Juana Mora, a Latino/a health expert and a professor at California State University Northridge (CSUN), states that the diet of the people of Latin America changes into a less healthy diet the more time they live in the United States. That time also results in a departure from the “roots of one’s culture; food, in other words,” which, as she further explains, is the reason why the generations born in the U.S. sometimes do not have the opportunity to eat “as before”.

“People migrate to the United States and often cannot pay for a decent place to live, so they then live without sufficient resources to get good food. Then, that results in their having to buy fast food and other food that is cheap, yes, but bad. The consequence is that there are more Latinos that are in poor health.” – Juana Mora, Ph.D.

The idea is that sometimes it is not so much that people are voluntarily choosing a lifestyle (a misconception), but there are social and institutional factors that may have a role in any outcome. So what can be done? Many

have adopted a grassroots approach, starting small and influencing and serving a community in need. Reverend David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, stated in a Newsweek article that “we must continue to help those who face poverty [with] the creation of more food banks, educate people about the dangers of poor nutrition, and fight for changes in policies — all this in order to eliminate racial disparities still exist and affect social issues like poverty and food insecurity.” Evelmyn added that hunger itself can be eradicated because the U.S. has more than sufficient resources to allow for it.

Knowledge is Power

Aracely Martiñón Saravia is about 20 years old and lives in the Mexican state known for its mole poblano, possibly the most “typical” Mexican dish, which is an entree full of various types of chiles and chocolate, ingredients whose roots stem from that state, Puebla. She recalls with nostalgia hers days growing up on a farm in Puebla: each meal her mother whipped up was made with their own herbs, tomatoes, pumpkins . . .

Araceli decides to emigrate to the United States five years later and comes across people who have never cooked a pumpkin. This finding, among other things, encouraged her to get involved with the Nehemiah Project. Now she’s helping women who need not only food, but also guidance on how to prepare the wonders that are vegetables.

Carmen Peraza, the current director, sees opportunities to educate the people who are seeking food at the pantry. By changing the way people sign up to collect food, she has opened the doors for them to have more confidence in the church, so they feel more comfortable and see a support team in Nehemiah. The Project wishes to see the families spend more time in the church, to receive education — Carmen has ideas to have health fairs, cooking classes (inspired by Araceli), flower arranging, anything to create a sense of community — to help create a confidence in themselves, says Peraza. As Pastor Vásquez declared, these classes would help towards creating social justice in a city that truly needs it.

Audio Documentary

For more information on the roots, challenges, and obstacles of the NehemiahProject, please hear the audio documentary about the food pantry. CAPTIONS AVAILABLE.

Para leer la versión en español, por favor oprime aquí.

Tags:  Aníbal Vásquez CSUN Cynthia Rendon food justice food pantries health Juana Mora Nehemiah Project Poverty Proyecto Nehemias