NOVEMBER 2019 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 13
AND HUNGER PERSIST ON THE ISLAND
Cares. “It’s troubling to see an
increase in the number of people
utilizing our network of pantries at
a time when overall numbers of food
insecurity in the region are decreasing.
It illustrates that families in need
are experiencing greater need and
visiting pantries more often just to
get by.”
Statewide, more than 2.4 million New
Yorkers classify as food insecure,
advocates say.
While those numbers are troubling,
there is some good news. After President
Donald Trump’s trade war with
China left many American farmers
unable to sell their crops overseas,
the government bought the food as a
part of a federal bailout and donated
the fresh fruit, vegetables, and meat
to food banks nationwide that are
typically stocked only with nonperishable
items such as canned goods.
LI’s food banks recently received
millions of pounds as a part of the
program.
That’s not to say Long Islanders who
are able to donate to food banks
should hold off. Island Harvest puts
the total number of food insecure
Long Islanders at more than 300,000.
Local hunger relief groups will continue
to need all the help they can get.
MOVING FORWARD
The dovetailing issues of homelessness
and hunger are not going to
solve themselves. And thousands
more Long Islanders are at risk,
studies show.
Thirty-three percent of Long Island
households are above the poverty
level but don’t make enough to keep
up with the high cost of living in Nassau
and Suffolk counties, according
to a 2018 study by the United Way of
New York State.
The report — a follow up to the inaugural
analysis in 2016 — dubbed this
segment of the population ALICE,
short for Asset Limited, Income
Constrained, Employed. That is,
those people who can’t make ends
meet without making tough choices
regarding basic necessities: food,
shelter, child care, transportation,
and healthcare. For example, some
are forced to forgo health care, child
care, good food, and even car insurance
in order to pay their rent — sacrifices
that put their health, safety,
and future at risk.
On Long Island, 302,988 households
were struggling to afford these basic
needs in the decade since the Great
Recession ended in 2010 — 132,236 in
Nassau and 170,752 in Suffolk. In Nassau,
the household survival budget is
$89,208 for a home with two adults,
one infant and one preschooler. In
Suffolk, it’s $97,296. Yet 51 percent of
all full-time jobs statewide pay less
than $40,000 annually. Even working
multiple jobs often does not provide
sufficient income to meet the ALICE
threshold.
“Long Islanders are working hard
for the wages they earn, but unfortunately
those wages might not be
enough to cover life’s basic costs,” said
United Way of Long Island President
and CEO Theresa Regnante. “These
families don’t qualify for federal
assistance, and can find themselves
needing help from organizations
like United Way to recover from an
unexpected cost or emergency situation.
This ALICE Report highlights
the significant difference between
income and cost of living, pointing
out the need to work toward bringing
those numbers closer together.”
The question is, what are Long Islanders
going to do about it?
Local food banks say more than 300,000 Long Islanders are food insecure and rely on food pantries and
soup kitchens. (Getty Images)
2018 LI HOMELESSNESS
FIGURES
Total: 3,781
Sheltered: 2,597
Mentally ill: 259
Domestic violence survivors: 128
Veterans: 128
Unaccompanied youth: 81
Substance abusers: 85
In transitional housing: 75
Unsheltered: 46
Diagnosed with HIV/AIDS: 10
Source: Long Island Coalition for the
Homeless
LI FOOD INSECURITY
FIGURES
Long Islanders impacted by food
insecurity in 2017: 259,000
Number of those who are children:
79,000
Number of Long Islanders who make
too much to qualify for food stamps
but still need to rely on food banks and
soup kitchens: 103,434
Source: Long Island Cares
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