Poverty Continues to Grow. Your Voice is Needed.
Posted by:
SuperUser Account
on
10/3/2012
As many of you know, September has been Poverty and Hunger Awareness month at the Center, so we've been hard at work educating Virginians about the realities of life below the poverty line and the state and federal policies that impact these families.
Unfortunately, new data reveals that poverty is on the rise in many Virginia cities and counties. Just last week the Census Bureau released new data indicating that the number of Virginia families living in poverty increased from 2010 to 2011. And our kids fare far worse. As of 2011, 15% of kids in the Commonwealth live in poverty.
But 46 million Americans living in poverty is far too many. Our elected officials, at every level of government, can and must do more to invest in policies that protect vulnerable families and enrich our communities.We know these policies matter, in part because the new data also demonstrates that programs like Social Security, nutrition assistance (SNAP) and the Earned Income Tax Credit kept millions more Americans from experiencing life below the poverty line.
We invite you to take action in one simple way today. Sign the Half in Ten Pledge. By signing, which you can do online here, you will join the growing number of advocates calling upon elected officials to prioritize policies that will reduce poverty in half over the next 10 years. Our voices are needed more than ever as our congressmen face tough choices about the federal budget and our state officials prepare to come back to Richmond for the 2013 General Assembly.
Take a minute, sign the pledge, and make your voice heard.