Over the past five years, America has quietly slipped into a hunger crisis. It began in 2008, when hunger and food insecurity spiked across the country as a result of the financial collapse. Congress authorized tens of billions of dollars for food stamps and other nutrition programs to slow the rise of hunger, but not enough to bring it back down to pre-recession levels.
Over the past five years, America has quietly slipped into a hunger crisis. It began in 2008, when hunger and food insecurity spiked across the country as a result of the financial collapse. Congress authorized tens of billions of dollars for food stamps and other nutrition programs to slow the rise of hunger, but not enough to bring it back down to pre-recession levels.
Last year, 49 million Americans suffered from food insecurity. Food stamp use has risen to historic levels, and food pantries are struggling to keep up with unprecedented need for their services. And instead of getting better, things are about to get much, much worse.
The food stamps program will receive an automatic $5 billion cut on Nov. 1, affecting every single family that relies on the program. Photographer John Trotter spent time with one of those families: Brooklyn’s Winsome Stoner, her husband, and her five children.
