Over 7,000 students see their lunch debts wiped after $1 million donation

robocall@lemmy.world to News@lemmy.world – 525 points –
Over 7,000 students see their lunch debts wiped after $1 million donation
goodmorningamerica.com

Over 7,000 students in Georgia with unpaid lunch balances are getting a helping hand following a $1 million initiative from the Arby's Foundation, the nonprofit announced Thursday.

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what the fuck is a lunch debt???

States that opted out of federal funding for school lunches (because fuck them poor kids) let hungry children run up a tab on cafeteria lunches. Then they punish and publicly shame them for not paying. Why? FREEDOM. 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸

https://soeonline.american.edu/blog/what-is-lunch-shaming/

God damn, they took the kids food back and threw it away.

What fucking assholes to put a child through that. Embarrassing.

Waitwaitwait excusmethefuckwhat?

HOW the hell did USA happen into an idea of putting goddamn KIDS into debt?! I mean, I live in EU. In my country, there were school-run lunches...or rather dinners, anyway. These were paid upfront, once per month, at overall small price (still somewhat pricey, but actual alternative for families that didn't want to pack sandwiches for their kids.)

But ALSO! Wtf USA? If lunch is such a problem, why not, dunno, make your child lunch for school at home?

I cannot wrap my head around this. It's weird. Too weird.

The families in question don't have the time or money to serve breakfast and pack lunches, both parents work multiple jobs to make ends not quite meet, type of situation. School meals are a convenience for middle/upper class families and a life preserver for low income/food insecure families. For a lot of those kids it's the only meals they get that day.

At my school growing up we had the pre paid lunch cards in a file at the start of the lunch line, the lunch card lady would find and punch your card when you went through. The "free lunch" cards were a different color than the "pre paid lunch" cards, which some of the parents worried was causing embarrassment for the children on food assistance. So the PTA voted to make them all the same color, with no way for kids to see if other kids qualified for free lunches.

That's the difference between conservative and progressive states. As of last year in California all schools are required to offer breakfast and lunch to all children regardless of ability to pay. In my area (of California) there are stations set up daily through out the summer break to distribute sack lunches for kids who don't eat when they don't go to school.

Conservative states literally refuse free money from the federal government for these programs (the states do have to put up some money for it too) because they don't think that anyone should get "something for nothing" including hungry children. To the point that these kids get their food thrown in the trash after they've been served, by grown up bullies who work for the school. Because that's what Jesus would do.

Only meal a day...

You know what, the more I read the more I believe that ya all live in some sort of dysfunctioning dystopia. First thought was "then why won't they move somewhere cheaper" but I guess in USA it may be not possible, am I right?

I mean, in what hellish place both parents have to take more than one job just to survive? One of them wpuld be understandable. One struggling with many while other stays at home too. But both? WTF.

Anyway, thanks for comment, ot was informative if not depressing.

It's the cost of hosting a lanch party