Food Stamps

Cynthia E. Griffin-  |   OW Managing Editor
Apr 28 2011

Prospecting for summer money

With research assistance from Kristen Peters, OW High School Intern

As a teenager, Francisco Perez used the proceeds from his job with the Summer Youth Employment program to purchase his first car. Today, he is one of those in charge of running the program through the Los Angeles County Department of Community and Senior Services.

But, he still remembers the pride and sense of self-satisfaction gained from that work experience.

Apr 28 2011

Only half of those eligible apply

The County of Los Angeles has launched a campaign to help urge the hundreds of thousands of residents who are eligible to apply for food stamps to do so, and to simultaneously inform people about the program’s new name.

At the federal level, the Food Stamp program was renamed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and in California it is now called CalFresh.

Currently, an estimated 1 million households receive the CalFresh benefit, and according to county officials that is only about half of the people eligible.

Dec 22 2010

Preventing hunger

LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Social workers are visiting neighborhoods around Los Angeles County to urge people to sign up for food stamps, or CalFresh as the program is now known.

"Now more than ever—to prevent hunger due to the current state of the economy—it's our goal to increase the number of eligible L.A. County residents who receive this assistance,'' said Philip Browning, the director of the county Department of Public Social Services.

The county recently deployed workers in a van to spread the word.

Juliana D. Norwood  |   OW Staff Writer
Dec 16 2010

When freedom of speech goes too far

The Rev. Al Sharpton is currently conducting a series of meetings with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in an effort to put an end to what he says are Rush Limbaugh’s racist rants that have become routine on his radio show.

Sharpton recently appeared on MSNBC, where he and host Ed Schultz discussed their disapproval of Limbaugh, as well as Sharpton’s efforts with the FCC.

“We have a series of meetings going on, and we’re going to see the FCC next week,” Sharpton said.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.