Hunger and food insecurity are undermining the stability of Latino communities. Data suggests that 21 percent of Latinos in the United States are food insecure. Even more troublingly, almost 25 percent of Latino children live in a food-insecure household. In Atlanta, more than 750,000 persons depend on food pantries and meal service programs to feed their families. If poverty data is a an accurate measure of hunger, then Latinos make up a significant share of Atlanta’s hungry.
In an effort to ameliorate hunger in Atlanta’s Latino communities, Hispanic Federation and the Latin American Association (LAA) joined forces last month to launch a year-long campaign to address hunger among Atlanta Latinos.
“We see many families in our community that don’t have enough to eat,” said Aníbal Torres, executive director of the LAA. “There are many families that we are not able to help. Thanks to the generous support of the Hispanic Federation and the Walmart Foundation, we will be able to reach out to these families and offer them food, nutrition information and help applying for benefits that they are eligible for.”
The LAA was awarded $40,000 to help 2,000 individuals this year.
LAA’s anti-hunger campaign in Atlanta is part of the Hispanic Federation’s national Lucha Contra El Hambre initiative, which addresses hunger in Latino communities by raising awareness of the problem, providing support to nonprofit organizations to distribute food, and facilitating access to food-related services such as SNAP.
“Hispanic Federation is proud to support the Latin American Association and call them a partner in the fight against hunger. Food insecurity is an issue that plagues far too many Latino families, and the National Hunger Relief Initiative seeks to address this crisis head on. With the support of the Walmart Foundation, we’re providing thousands of meals across the country, and giving hope and sustenance to those families that need it the most,” said Diana Caba, Hispanic Federation's Director of Economic Empowerment.
For more information on the LAA or the Lucha Contra El Hambre Initiative, click here and here.
