Media Contact:
Emily Pickren
epickren@frac.org
202-640-1118
Statement attributed to Ellen Vollinger, legal/SNAP director, Food Research & Action Center (FRAC)
WASHINGTON, January 27, 2020 — Today, the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily lifted nationwide court orders blocking implementation of the Trump administration’s public charge rule, forcing immigrant families — including those with U.S. citizen children — to make impossible choices between food and family. This rule’s intended effect counters everything that this nation stands for by instilling fear and making it tougher for immigrant families — particularly families of color and low-income families — to enter and stay in the U.S. and access programs that safeguard their nutrition, health care, housing, and economic security.
FRAC opposes this and all other efforts to take food away from families struggling with hunger and poverty. We will continue to address the rule’s “chilling effect” on SNAP participation among people in immigrant families, many of whom are not directly affected by the rule. FRAC also will continue to work to oppose the rule as courts proceed to review pending legal challenges to it on the merits.
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For 50 years, the Food Research & Action Center has been the leading national nonprofit organization working to eradicate poverty-related hunger and undernutrition in the United States. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
