Childhood Poverty in America

"Oh my God! I'm starving!" 
"If I don't eat, I'm gonna die."

How often do we spew out these words? How often do we whine and complain because our lunch plans have been delayed an hour or so? We many times proclaim that we are "starving," "ravenous," "dying of hunger."

But what does it really mean to be starving? To go to sleep hungry? To not know if the next meal will come, and if it does, what it will even be?

Ask the 19.8% of school-age American children who are living below the poverty line.

If you break that statistic down, it means that 1 in 5 American school children are considered poor. (This does not even factor in the "working poor" and those struggling to make ends meet).

Get Involved:
-Volunteer at a local soup kitchen or food bank
-Hold a food drive and collect non-perishable items
-Talk to local restaurants about collecting unused food and donating it

Read More:
-Learn about Child Hunger in your community
-Check out New Ideas to help make a difference
-Read My Mother's Car to hear one child's story of poverty
-Read Hope for Children in Poverty: Profiles and Possibilities





Phrases of Action:
What is the poverty line?
Currently in the US, it is an income of $22,314 per year for a family of four.