Brooklynites have been lining up hours before food pantries open, as panic over Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cuts could affect thousands of New Yorkers, the BK Reader reported.
About 1.8 million New York City residents rely on SNAP, but a spending bill that passed this year will cause over 200,000 New Yorkers to lose their benefits, CBS News reported.
“People who are already stretched thin are now terrified they will not be able to feed their children,” Chief Executive Officer of nonprofit JCCA, Ann Marie Scalia, told BK Reader.
With the growing lines to get into food pantries, the hardest hit neighborhoods in Brooklyn are Bushwick, Bedford Stuyvesant, East New York, Flatbush, and Brownsville.
“We’re hearing parents skipping meals to feed their kids,” CEO and Executive Director of West Side Campaign Against Hunger and Co-founder and Executive Director of the Roundtable, Greg Hunger, told CBS News.
Families fear that they might have their SNAP aid taken away or reduced in half due to the Big Beautiful Bill signed by President Donald Trump. Funding will be reduced $186 billion over a 10-year period, which is a 20% cut.
Harvard Kennedy School reported that this is the largest funding cut SNAP has ever received.
The Campaign Against Hunger in Bedford Stuyvesant serves between 500 to 600 families every day, with a surge in demand that they’ve never seen before.
“Every day is nonstop, serving people who are working seniors, veterans, and families who have never needed this support before. We are trying to meet every need, but there is only so much we can do,” Dr. Melony Samuels, chief executive officer at the campaign, told the BK Reader.
With lines wrapping around the block, the campaign needed to hire part-time workers and keep staff past closing to continue to feed the community.
“We cannot replace SNAP,” she said. “Emergency feeding programs have done a tremendous job holding down the fort, but SNAP is the first line of food defense. Families cannot wait.”
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