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Transcript/ScriptNYC Food Insecurity
HEADLINE: More New Yorkers struggling with food insecurity, report finds
TEASER: Increasing number of city residents, including the employed, rely on food pantries
PUBLISHED AT: 11/27/2024 at 12:30PM
BYLINE: Tina Trinh
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: New York
VIDEOGRAPHER: Tina Trinh
VIDEO EDITOR: Tina Trinh
ASSIGNING EDITOR: Stearns
SCRIPT EDITORS: Mia Bush, Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA original
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_
TRT: 3:00
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TVR
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO))
[[As many Americans gather around the dinner table this Thanksgiving holiday, a recent report finds that in America’s largest city, more residents are experiencing food insecurity. Local food pantries in New York are seeing an increase in visitors, including among those who are employed. VOA's Tina Trinh explains.]]
((NATS))
((NARRATOR))
At Food Bank for New York City, workers are busy moving and packing donated food headed to local food pantries and soup kitchens.
((FOR RADIO: Zanita Tisdale (“zuh-NEE-duh TIS-dale”) is the vice president of agency and organizational impact at Food Bank for New York City))
((Zanita Tisdale, Food Bank for New York City))
“We are one of the largest hunger relief organizations serving all five boroughs. We operate and support over 90% of the zip codes that are located here in our city, and we do that through close partnership with over 800 nonprofit partners.”
((NARRATOR))
It’s a busy time of year, as many Americans will join family and friends to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. But a new report finds that in New York, the largest U.S. city, an increasing number of its residents are struggling to eat.
((VOA GFX))
New York-based philanthropy Robin Hood tracked usage of the city’s food pantries, finding that that before the COVID-19 pandemic, 1 in 5, or 20%, of adults used a food pantry at least once between 2015 and 2019. That has jumped to 31%, or nearly 1 in 3 adults, in the years since.
((NARRATOR))
The face of hunger has also changed, Tisdale says.
((Zanita Tisdale, Food Bank for New York City))
“What we see now is that more and more working families are visiting the local food pantries and soup kitchens, and actually the smallest percentage of those visiting soup kitchens or food pantries are homeless men.”
((FOR RADIO: Chymeka Olfonse (“shuh-MEE-kah all-FONTS”) is the managing director of adults and household supports at Robin Hood))
((Chymeka Olfonse, Robin Hood))
“There’s this false mentality like, ‘Oh, these folks just want a handout,’ when really, I think people are really struggling to just make ends meet.”
((NARRATOR))
Many are employed, according to the Robin Hood report, which found that 2 in 3 New Yorkers who visited food pantries were also working.
((Chymeka Olfonse, Robin Hood))
“We lost a lot of jobs in the pandemic. A lot of jobs have returned, but unfortunately, a lot of the jobs that returned or just came online were really those that are just not paying enough. There is not significant wage growth.”
((NARRATOR))
Wages aren’t keeping pace with other major costs, adding to New Yorkers’ financial burdens.
((radio: Again, Zanita Tisdale))
((Zanita Tisdale, Food Bank for New York City))
“Because of all of those mitigating factors now, New Yorkers are finding it harder and harder for one dollar to stretch as far as it did before.”
((NARRATOR))
Food insecurity affects 1.3 million New Yorkers, according to the food bank, and it spans a spectrum of users. For some households, pantries are critical; for others, a preventative measure.
((radio: Again, Chymeka Olfonse))
((Chymeka Olfonse, Robin Hood))
“There is a trifecta of hardship in New York City // and the trifecta of hardship is the high cost of housing, childcare and also basic necessities like food and utilities.”
((NARRATOR))
The affordability crisis has resulted in a more diverse group of people visiting food pantries. And it’s why some experts say government funding is vital, even as the new administration has signaled impending cuts to certain programs.
((Chymeka Olfonse, Robin Hood))
“This election came down to kitchen table issues and food is very much so a kitchen table issue. And this is an opportunity for the incoming administration to really bolster the safety net and to make those investments.”
((NARRATOR))
Otherwise, Olfonse says, the food pantries will likely attract even more people in need.
((Tina Trinh, VOA News, New York))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateNovember 27, 2024 15:19 EST
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
