Washington, D.C. – Bread for the World is urging members of Congress to include hunger and poverty in their debates about immigration reform. Last week, House Republican leaders released a one-page document outlining principles for immigration reform.
Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, issued the following statement in response:
“We appreciate the Republicans’ principles, and look forward to a healthy debate on this issue. I hope that these principles can be a first step to addressing not only our border security, but also the root causes of immigration.
“Migration is often part of the great exodus from hunger, as people move across national borders to escape poverty and improve their livelihoods. Similarly, undocumented immigrants in the United States—an estimated 11-12 million people—disproportionately experience hunger, which is why comprehensive immigration reform must address hunger as an immigration issue, both domestically and abroad.
“House GOP leaders stated that they are committed to ‘working in a bipartisan manner to fix our broken immigration system. We commend their efforts, and urge Congress to consider both the root causes and implications of undocumented immigration in finding solutions.”
Afghanistan would be considered likely to have high rates of hunger because at least two of the major causes of global hunger affect it—armed conflict and fragile governmental institutions.
Malnutrition is responsible for nearly half of all preventable deaths among children under 5. Every year, the world loses hundreds of thousands of young children and babies to hunger-related causes.
Bread for the World is calling on the Biden-Harris administration and Congress to build a better 1,000-Days infrastructure in the United States.
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in faith.” These words from Colossians 2:6 remind us of the faith that is active in love for our neighbors.
The Bible on...
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is designed to respond to changes in need, making it well suited to respond to crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bread for the World and its partners are asking Congress to provide $200 million for global nutrition.
In 2017, 11.8 percent of households in the U.S.—40 million people—were food-insecure, meaning that they were unsure at some point during the year about how they would provide for their next meal.