This post was originally published on the U.S. Department of Labor’s blog, Work in Progress, on September 17. I had the great honor of joining a small group of faith leaders to meet with Secretary of Labor Tom Perez to discuss issues facing low-wage workers. It was a profoundly moving experience…
Archives: Voices
Champion for Domestic Workers Deservedly Wins MacArthur “Genius Grant”
This post was originally published on Oxfam America’s blog, The Politics of Poverty, on September 17. Congrats to Ai-jen Poo, Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, organizing housekeepers, nannies and home health aides to expand workplace protections. Given the generally low wages and bad working conditions of America’s one…
CHN’s New Report: The Take-Away from the New Poverty Trends
I hope you’ll check out this new report by CHN’s Lecia Imbery: New Census Data Confirm Millions Are Still Being Left Behind. You may have seen some press coverage about the reduction in poverty that occurred between 2012 and 2013. For the U.S. as a whole, the poverty rate declined…
Nuns on the Bus Notes from Sioux City
The second Nuns on the Bus town hall was held at the Sanford Center in Sioux City, Iowa, part of the most conservative area of the state. The venue was fitting as the Center’s mission is to create interracial understanding and better community living. The lively discussion that permeated the…
On the Road in Iowa with Nuns on the Bus and Vice President Biden
It’s great to be on Nuns on the Bus (NOTB) back home in the heartland of Iowa. Day one was powerful. The sun on the golden dome of the Capitol in Des Moines with the bus in the foreground served as the backdrop for the stage where Sister Simone Campbell, executive director…
New Census Data Confirms Too Many Are Still Stuck in Poverty
With the Census Bureau’s release of 2013 income, poverty, and health insurance coverage data this morning, and it’s been a flurry of activity at CHN and in the wider human needs arena all day. CHN’s Deborah Weinstein released a statement noting that, while poverty did decline from 2012 to 2013, the…
Are You Ready to Use the Census Bureau’s Newest Poverty Data?
On September 16 and 18, the Census Bureau will release 2013 findings from national income and poverty data and the American Community Survey, respectively. Get prepared for the newest release of Census poverty data on September 11 with CHN’s annual webinar training, The New Poverty Data: Using it to Show What Works (and What Doesn’t)…
Fact of the Week: One in Seven U.S. Households Is Food Insecure
More than 17.5 million American households had trouble providing adequate food for everyone in their family at some point in 2013, according to new data released yesterday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Economic Research Service. Despite being one more year out of a recession that officially ended in 2009, the percentage…
Head Smacker: Taking Blaming the Victim to New Lows
Central American Children Seek Refuge from Violence;Some in Congress Say The Children are the Threat Children fleeing Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador have been streaming into the U.S. and other nearby nations. Some members of Congress who oppose funding services for them have simply wanted to deny children entry and…
How We Should Really Honor Labor Day
For many of us who are lucky enough to have full-time jobs and paid holidays, Labor Day usually means a 3-day weekend, one last chance to go to the beach before summer ends, getting the kids ready for the new school year, or a barbeque with friends. In short, a…
Fact of the Week: 1 in 7 Americans Rely on Food Pantries
More than 46 million Americans, including 12 million children and 7 million seniors, rely on food pantries and meal programs to feed themselves and their families, according to a study released last week by Feeding America. That’s 1 in 7 people in the U.S. Hunger in America, the study produced…
Head Smacker: Corporations Change Citizenship to Avoid Paying Their Fair Share
Corporate inversion has been all over the news lately. It’s the process by which American corporations renounce their U.S. “citizenship” and, often by buying a smaller company overseas, incorporate in a foreign country, without much change in its operations. This allows these companies to get all the benefits of being…