SNAP Cuts and Tariffs Threaten Thanksgiving for Thousands of Hudson Valley Families
Empire State Voices Donates $1,000 Worth of Food to Hudson Valley Food Banks Ahead of Thanksgiving
HUDSON VALLEY, NEW YORK — Yesterday, ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, Empire State Voices donated $1,000 worth of turkeys and non-perishables to local food banks at the Tarrytown Community Opportunity Center and Peekskill Housing Authority. At a time when 1 in 4 U.S. households are living paycheck-to-paycheck and food prices are on the rise due to tariffs, families across the Hudson Valley are struggling to put food on the table. Cuts to SNAP have only made matters worse.
As grocery costs have risen, so has food insecurity across the Hudson Valley. One out of every seven New Yorkers in the 17th Congressional District relies on SNAP food assistance, over 30,000 of whom are children. Because of SNAP cuts included in the Republican Tax Law earlier this year, which Congressman Mike Lawler voted for, hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers are at immediate risk of losing their benefits as strict new requirements begin to be enforced.
Empire State Voices donated $1,000 worth of turkeys and non-perishables to local food banks at the Tarrytown Community Opportunity Center and Peekskill Housing Authority. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
“Being on a fixed income, the meager benefits I got from SNAP were one of the only things that allowed me to keep putting food on the table,” said Mary, a SNAP recipient from Peekskill. “But because of the chaos and confusion of the cuts, I was kicked off the program. Nothing about my need changed; I was simply forced to go without until I managed to fight my way back in. I managed to make it work, but how many others in my position didn’t? How many families here in the Hudson Valley are going hungry this Thanksgiving?”
“In the wealthiest country in the world, no family should be forced to go hungry,” said Dylan Wheeler, NY-17 Regional Organizing Director for Empire State Voices. “New Yorkers are already struggling under the pressures of a cost-of-living crisis made worse by Republican tariffs and inflation. The last thing working families need is to be forced off the benefits that allow them to afford groceries and put food on the table this Thanksgiving. The Republican tariffs and SNAP cuts have only just begun to impact families here in the Hudson Valley, and I worry that things are only going to get worse from here.”
Hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers are at immediate risk of losing their benefits as strict new SNAP requirements begin to be enforced. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
"As Hudson Valley families struggle to keep up with the ever-rising cost of living, we've begun to see a serious spike in need here in our local community," said Doris Inzar, Director of the Tarrytown Community Opportunity Center. "Between inflation, tariffs, and recent cuts to critical food assistance, grocery prices continue to go up, and New Yorkers are increasingly finding themselves without the means to feed their families. This is a crisis of food insecurity that will only continue to grow unless steps are taken to ensure working families have the resources they need."
“With the recent government shutdown and reductions in food assistance, many families here in the Hudson Valley are facing real hardship,” said Janneyn Phalen, Executive Director of Peekskill Housing Authority. “These are our neighbors—hardworking parents, children, and seniors—doing their best to make ends meet. Everyone deserves the security of knowing they can put food on the table with dignity. We urge all leaders to come together to find solutions that protect and support the people who need it most. Now is the time to put community first.”
To learn more about Empire State Voices, please reach out to press@empirestatevoices.org
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About Empire State Voices
Empire State Voices (ESV) is a multi-year campaign dedicated to amplifying the voices of everyday working New Yorkers. ESV is fighting for economic policies that make life more affordable for constituents and holding members of Congress across the state accountable when they fail to do the same.
