As CEO of a human service agency that serves the poor and vulnerable, I keep listening for a discussion among the presidential and vice presidential candidates of the issues facing the people we serve daily who are trying to raise their families with minimal resources. Parents are facing cuts in childcare support, rising utility costs, high gas prices, and increasing food costs.
In Rochester, 29 percent of our neighbors live below the poverty level. That is 56,289 children, women and men. And, children suffer the most: 42 percent of the children in Rochester live below the poverty level. Imagine trying to support a family of four on $21,600 a year.
So, as I watch the debates, I hear the candidates speak about middle class families struggling to make it. Their concern is well-founded and we share it. Just this year alone, CFC has seen a more than 50 percent increase in the number of people coming to our emergency services office because they can't meet their families' needs for food, clothing and shelter. Many of them say they've never had to ask anyone for help before. More and more people in the "middle class" are facing the very real prospect of slipping into poverty. Add to that concern the systemic poverty in our country that already holds 37 million Americans in its grip. When will we demand that candidates address the needs of all our citizens, especially the vulnerable and those facing poverty? Continued
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