No Food, No Justice
Published September 17, 2009 @ 06:00AM PT
Although he is known as the father of the agricultural "Green Revolution" in places like Mexico, India, Africa and Southeast Asia, the message that Dr. Norman Borlaug spread throughout his life--which unfortunately ended on September 12, 2009--is one that Americans must also take heed of.
While accepting his Nobel Peace Prize in 1970, Borlaug referred to an adequate supply of food as the "first essential component of social justice." Or in other words, as the one thing every country must ensure its citizens in order to truly be a civilized society.
In the U.S., there is a need to frame food (in)security as more of a social justice issue, rather than making the struggle to feed oneself simply about who has the money to purchase quality food and who does not.
We live in a country where the rate of obesity in our population is rapidly catching up to the number of citizens living in constant fear of going hungry. While these two conditions may appear to be distinct, the common thread weaving these groups together is lack of financial resources.
As the authors of the ground-breaking report The Paradox Between Hunger and Obesity in America (pdf) conclude, "with fewer resources to buy food, or to obtain health care or other preventive or remedial interventions, the poor are particularly susceptible to damage from hunger/food insecurity, obesity, or both."
It is not enough to ensure that everyone has enough to eat. What will truly be a turning point in the progression of American society is when each and every person has the ability to feed themselves with food that not only meets their caloric intake requirements, but doesn't make them sick either.
And unless we start to view access to healthy food as every bit as important of a human right as freedom of religion and freedom from racial or gender persecution, nothing is going to change.
In the words of the late Dr. Borlaug, "without [access to healthy food], all other components of social justice are meaningless."
(Photo credit: IRRI Images on Flickr)
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Author
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Greg Plotkin is currently a grant-writer living in Washington, DC. As a two-year AmeriCorps member teaching in DC Public Schools, he saw families struggling with poverty on a daily basis and has become particularly interested in hunger, nutrition and food access issues. He has also viewed poverty through the lens of his work with Habitat for Humanity and Charlie's Place--a DC soup kitchen and homeless support center.
Featured Poverty in America Actions
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Repeal the Hyde Amendment!
88 People
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Repeal the Hyde Amendment!
Good Article. I go hungry often
Posted by Rachel Russell on 09/17/2009 @ 03:51PM PT
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