美国越来越少的家庭挨饿。但是粮食援助的削减迫在眉睫

美国越来越少的家庭挨饿。但是粮食援助的削减迫在眉睫

Millions of families in the U.S. struggled to get enough food to eat last year, but conditions appear to be getting better as the economy improves.

去年，美国数百万家庭难以获得足够的食物，但随着经济的提高，情况似乎正在好转。

In a new report released Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says that about 11 percent of households — just over 14 million — had trouble putting enough food on the table last year and that in about 4 percent of households, someone went hungry because there was not enough money to buy food.

在周三发布的一份新报告,美国农业部说,大约11%的家庭——超过1400万——餐桌上没有足够的食物,在大约4%的家庭,有人因为没有足够的钱买食物而挨饿。

While the numbers are high, they have steadily dropped in recent years and the government says that the level of what it calls food "insecurity" is finally back to where it was before the Great Recession began in 2007.

尽管这一数字很高，但近年来一直在稳步下降。政府表示，“食不果腹”的水平终于回到了2007年大萧条开始前的水平。

"That's good news," says Rachel Merker of First Focus, a group that advocates for children and families. But she and other anti-hunger advocates worry that the new numbers will be used to justify cuts in government aid. They say that hunger is still a problem, especially among certain vulnerable groups.

“这是个好消息，”儿童和家庭权益倡导组织First Focus的雷切尔·默克说。但她和其他反饥饿倡导者担心，新的数字将被用来证明削减政府援助的合理性。他们说，饥饿仍然是一个问题，特别是在某些弱势群体中。

For the most part, children are shielded from food shortages because adults often miss meals to ensure that the younger members of the household have enough to eat. But the report — which is put out each year by the USDA's Economic Research Service — found that 15 percent of children lived in food-insecure households last year. And it found that as many as 540,000 children actually went hungry because of a lack of food.

在很大程度上，儿童免受食品短缺的影响，因为成年人经常不吃饭，以确保家中更年轻的人有足够的食物。但是这份由美国农业部经济研究服务部每年发布的报告发现，去年有15%的儿童生活在食不果腹的家庭中。研究发现，实际上有54万儿童因为缺乏食物而挨饿。

The USDA says black and Hispanic families, as well as those headed by single women or men, struggled the most to get enough food. Twenty-one percent of black, non-Hispanic households and 16 percent of Hispanic households were food insecure.

美国农业部表示，黑人和西班牙裔家庭，以及那些由单身女性或男性领导的家庭，在获得足够的食物方面最为艰难。21%的黑人、非西班牙裔家庭和16%的西班牙裔家庭没有粮食保障。

The numbers are based on an annual survey conducted by the Census Bureau, which asks individuals about difficulties they encountered getting enough food to provide balanced meals for all members of the household and whether anyone was forced to cut back on meals or go hungry during the year.

这些数字是基于美国人口普查局进行的一项年度调查得出的。该调查询问个人在获得足够的食物来为所有家庭成员提供均衡膳食时遇到的困难，以及是否有人在一年中被迫减少饮食或挨饿。

The decline in the number of food-insecure households comes as the Trump administration has proposed tightening eligibility for some food aid programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps.

“食不果腹”家庭数量下降之际，特朗普政府提议收紧一些食品援助项目的资格，比如补充营养援助计划，也称食品券。

The administration argues that a stronger economy means that more recipients should be able to find jobs and be less reliant on government help. Among other things, the Trump administration has proposed new work requirements for single, able-bodied adults, a change that critics say could cost 750,000 SNAP recipients their benefits because they will be unable to meet the requirements.

美国政府认为，经济走强意味着更多的受助人应该能够找到工作，减少对政府援助的依赖。此外，特朗普政府还对身体健全的单身成年人提出了新的工作要求，批评人士称，这一改变可能会让75万“补充营养援助计划”用户失去福利，因为他们将无法满足这些要求。

The administration also wants to eliminate the flexibility states now have to raise certain asset and income levels that cannot be exceeded in order to qualify for food stamps. The rule change, if implemented, could end benefits for about 3 million people, according to the USDA.

美国政府还希望各州取消目前必须提高某些资产和收入水平的灵活性，没有超过这些资产和收入水平，才能有资格领取食品券。根据美国农业部的说法，这一规定的改变，如果得到实施，可能会终结约300万人的福利。

Critics of Trump's proposals argue that more people will go hungry if they do not continue to get help. More than half of all food-insecure households reported that they received SNAP benefits or participated in other government nutrition assistance programs last year.

批评特朗普提议的人认为，如果不能继续得到帮助，会有更多的人挨饿。在所有“食不果腹”的家庭中，超过一半的家庭报告说，他们去年获得了“补充营养援助计划”的福利，或者参加了政府的其他营养援助项目。

"If these proposed changes go into effect, there is a very real risk that this positive progress will be eroded by policy changes that penalize the poor and make it harder to feed our children," said Lisa Davis, senior vice president of Share Our Strength, an anti-hunger advocacy group.

反饥饿倡导组织“分享我们的力量”的高级副总裁莉萨·戴维斯说:“如果这些提议的改变生效，这一积极的进展很可能会受到政策变化的侵蚀，这些政策变化会惩罚穷人，让我们更难养活孩子。”

Advocates are also worried about the impact of another Trump proposal, which would make it difficult for immigrants to get green cards or extended visas if they use public benefits, such as food stamps. Social service providers have already reported a drop in immigrant families — including those with U.S. citizen children — using such programs for fear of the impact it will have on their status.

支持者还担心特朗普的另一项提议的影响，如果移民使用食品券等公共福利，他们将很难获得绿卡或延长签证。社会服务机构已经报告说，使用这类项目的移民家庭减少了，其中包括那些有美国公民子女的家庭，他们担心这类项目会影响他们的地位。