•
o
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•
c
o
i
own.
In the outh and Southwest,
the decline of the oil industry
has led to hundreds of
thousands 0(·10 t jobs. In Texas
lone, requests for emergency
food h ve doubled since 1983.
o
c
ild
arian
Wright
Edelman
In the Farm Belts manyfami­
Iy farms go under each year. Lit­
tie wonder that doctors in Iowa
d Minneso a are now remark-
that rates' of childhood mal­
nutrition, nemia, and growth
failure (all related to hunger)
are on the rise.
In the Rust Belt, many miners
and steelworkers are left
tranded in the e of cutbac s
and plant clo ing. In Allegheny
County, Pennsylvani requests
for emergency food have gone
up an ounding 1,742 percent
between 1979 and 1986.
We canno sit bac and watch
hunger sweep cross our na­
tion. It is, the tas Force
points out, "a prevent ble
epidemic." We c n eliminate
hunger by trengthening our
commitment to government
programs that have been proven
effective in fighting this
problem: Food Stamps, the Spe­
ci I Supplemental Food
Progr m for Women, Infant,
and Children (WI ), and the
chool Lunch and chonl
Breakfast Pro MS.
Let your . cnators and
Representatives hear from you
that you oppo all budget cuts
and support desperately needed
incre es: in the e successful
programs. Winston Churchill
was right when 'he said, "there is
no finer investment for any com­
munity than putting milk into
babies."
care'
for child birth and flexible
benefit plans that allow depend­
ent care.
Child welfare themes are
likely to assume center stage in
the upcoming presidential race.
'A comprehensive child care bill
introduced before Congress
ovember 19 (House: HR3660,
Senate: S1885) would ake
child care more affordable for
low and moderate income
families, and increase the acces-
ibility of quality child care for
all families. We should use let­
ter , phone calls and all means at
our disposal to m e s e the
; Ac. for Better Child' Care
receives both the candidates'
and the country' critical atten­
tion.
Alexia D. W
Council on Economic
Prioriti