Food insecurity is a lack of consistent access to enough food for all members of a family to lead active, healthy lives.
It is a global concern, affecting diverse populations from developing to developed countries.
Food insecurity is not just about hunger, its impact transcends into other aspects of life, creating a vicious cycle of poverty, and poor health, and even affecting learning and development amongst children.
The primary federal program created to fight food insecurity in the U.S. is SNAP, which was formerly referred to as the Food Stamps program.
Sharwin Anwer, an attorney with Cobb Legal Aid, who is also on staff at the Cobb Law Library, gave a talk called “Basics of Food Stamps.” This was part of a public educational series organized by the law library.
“So just a little background,” Anwer began. “Cobb Legal Aid is a nonprofit law firm providing free advice and or assistance to low-income people for many basic civil legal matters.”
“And we do prioritize issues of shelter and safety,” she said. “So the types of cases we handle are: family law, housing, education, special needs and public benefits.”
“We serve low-income individuals, and income eligibility is linked to the federal poverty rate and applicants must live in Cobb County or have a Cobb County case.”
“So when should you call Cobb Legal Aid? You should call us if you’re being evicted, if your landlord refuses to make repairs, if you’re experiencing domestic violence, if your disabled child’s educational needs are not being met, or if your public benefits are being terminated,” she said.
What is SNAP?
Anwer explained what the SNAP program does.
“SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” she said. “And it’s essentially financial assistance for food.”
“It’s administered by the Division of Family and Children’s Services, which is also commonly known as DFACS,” he said.
Who is…
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