Poverty and Food Stamps [Videos]

When teaching students about poverty and income inequality, I usually spend some time talking about the SNAP program, otherwise called Food Stamps.  Here are a few short videos that might help you lead a discussion on Food Stamps.

One way to reduce need on the SNAP Program is to raise wages.  Many students often worry that raising employee wages will be passed along to consumers. This video compares the prices that consumers pay--either in taxes or in prices for goods.



Other issues that often come up in discussions on food stamps (and any discussions on poverty and social welfare) are the ideas of deserving and. undeserving poor and abuse of the system.  What should people on Food Stamps use them to purchase? Is seafood healthy..or luxurious? Or does it depend on who is buying it?

Jon Stewart addresses this in a series of videos called "What Not to Eat". Stewart pokes fun at the inconsistent messages that poor people receive about Food Stamps.  [I am only posting the link to the first video, but once you watch it, you should be able to find "What Not to Eat Part 2"]

[If you are looking for a Full-Length film on this topic, try "A Place at the Table". Students have reacted very positively to this film. Following the film ,I asked them to try to eat on a Food Stamps budget for one week. It was a powerful exercise, though I should mentioned that this worked best in a classroom full of part-time adult students who were also working full time. In other words, they were responsible for their meals rather than receiving them from the dining Hall)