The 2013 Farm Bill Needs Your Involvement
Take Action! Our Goal: A Just and Fair Farm Bill
Sheila Gilbert, National President of the Society of dePaul USA writes,
Dear Vincentians,
As Congress begins to debate the 2013 Farm Bill, the National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul has joined the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities USA, and The National Catholic Rural Life Conference to urge our Congressional representatives to craft agricultural legislation that reflects a commitment to the common good. Agriculture policies must adequately respond to the needs of the most vulnerable and hungry people, and farmers and families in the United States and around the world.
Congress and the Administration face serious challenges in how best to craft our nation’s budget and agriculture policies. These choices, however, are more than economic and political: they are moral decisions with profound human consequences. Using the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or other programs that serve poor and hungry people is not the best way to find savings in the Farm Bill. Simply put, reductions should not come at the expense of vulnerable people in need — in other words, the people we as Vincentians serve.
In his recent message for World Food Day, Pope Francis cautioned, “It is a scandal that there is still hunger and malnutrition in the world…” This scandal compels us to respond not only to the immediate needs of hungry people but also ultimately to “achieve a just and lasting solution.”
Please click on “Take Action!” to send a letter to your Congressional representative to urge them to put those living in poverty and hunger first.
Yours in St. Vincent and Blessed Frédéric,
Sheila K. Gilbert
President
National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Tags: Advocacy, CCUSA, CRS, Farm Bill, SNAP, Society of St. Vincent de Paul, SVDP, USA, USCCB
