“The American Dream.” Americans hold this phrase close to heart. People come from other areas of the world hoping to experience it firsthand. Yet at the same time, an increasing number of people seem to share in the belief that it is an unattainable myth.
Archives: Voices
CHN applauds passage of minimum wage increase: ‘Today is not the end of this fight. But perhaps it is the beginning of the end.’
CHN this week applauded the U.S. House of Representatives for its vote to increase the minimum wage. We know that $15 an hour is the absolute minimum workers need nationwide in order to survive. Lifting low-income workers is the right and moral thing to do, pure and simple, and the Senate should take up the Raise the Wage Act of 2019, H.R. 582, for its consideration.
Trump administration plan to change how inflation is measured concerns advocates for poor
The Trump administration is weighing a plan that uses a different definition of inflation to determine who lives in poverty and who does not. If implemented, the measure would affect people’s eligibility for food stamps, Head Start, school lunch programs, parts of Medicaid and Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and other federal programs.
Save the date! National Call-in Day Monday, July 22. Tell your senators: No cuts. No government shutdown.
Once again, the Trump Administration and Congress are headed towards the brink. In September, services we need may come to a screeching halt unless new funding levels and the federal government’s authority to borrow are renewed. Since Congress will be leaving for August recess in a few weeks, these vital funding conversations are happening this week! Congress must act soon to agree on spending levels and to raise the limits on federal borrowing (the “debt ceiling”). And the time to speak out is NOW! On Monday, July 22nd, please join in a National Call-in Day.
CHN protests planned mass arrests of immigrants: ‘So much is at stake here’
The Trump Administration reportedly plans to carry out mass arrests to speed deportations of thousands of immigrants over the coming days. After shocking the conscience of the nation as we witnessed the grievous and continuing harm to children separated from their parents, the Trump Administration is apparently intent on recklessly tearing more parents from children.
Inside Mexico’s deteriorating migrant facilities: ‘Three days in total darkness’
Much has been written – although perhaps not nearly enough – about the cruel, decrepit, and even dangerous conditions inside migrant detention camps along the southern U.S. border. Now, however, details are emerging about conditions in migrant camps on the other side of the border – conditions exacerbated by the Trump Administration’s immigration policies. And it is a disturbing picture.
Hunger doesn’t take a vacation
It is summer time for schoolchildren, and the living is easy – unless you don’t know where your next meal is coming from. A new report released Wednesday by the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) found that far too many children across the country are missing out on the nutrition they need when the regular school year ends, and with it, the National School Lunch Program and a sister program that serves breakfasts.
HUD proposal puts tens of thousands of families at risk; comment period ends Tuesday
The Trump Administration wants to rip apart tens of thousands of families. Through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), it has proposed prohibiting mixed-status families from receiving housing assistance. Mixed-status families are families that include both members who are eligible and ineligible for housing assistance based on their immigration status.
More than 52,000 comments submitted opposing the latest attempt to shrink the poverty line
In May, the Trump Administration announced its latest plan to deny assistance to millions: shrinking the poverty line. Through our webinars, email blasts, direct outreach, and the support of our coalition members and other like-minded groups, CHN helped generate more than 52,000 comments opposing this attempt to redefine the poverty line, submitted from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
The Miami debates: Did the presidential candidates discuss poverty?
Last month, Voices for Human Needs wrote about an event sponsored by the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. The event featured nine presidential candidates who took turns taking the stage at Trinity Washington University to discuss their plans for fighting poverty in the United States. At the time of the event, it was noted that when presidential candidates gather for traditional debates, poverty does not exactly take center stage. So we wondered what would happen when 20 candidates gathered for two debates last week in Miami; would poverty and economic injustice be a focus of attention?
Breaking news: Media reports say Trump Administration has dropped efforts to include citizenship question in 2020 Census
Moments ago, media outlets — including Huffington Post and The New York Times, reported that U.S. Census forms are being printed and that the Trump Administration has dropped efforts to include a citizenship question. Reports HuffPo: “There will not be a question asking about citizenship on the 2020 census, the Trump administration said Tuesday.
The latest CHN Human Needs Report: Spending updates, emergency border aid passes, Supreme Court blocks Census citizenship question, and more
CHN just released another edition of the Human Needs Report. Read on for the latest on Congress’s spending work, aid for immigrants at the border, the Supreme Court’s decision on the Census citizenship question, and more.