Earlier this evening I went to the movies with Danielle (one half of Ryan and Danielle Beickert) to see A Place At The Table at the Sunshine Cinema. It was a great documentary, focusing on hunger and food policy (or the lack there of) in the United States.
The directors of the documentary, Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush, have created a powerful message in their film. The children and families they follow, the advocates and experts they interview, and the facts they present (in creative, clean graphics) paint a troubling portrait of families dealing with food insecurity. These families often go without meals or subsist on food that provides no nourishment. There were several key points made in A Place At The Table, but one of the most important is the link between hunger/food insecurity, and a child's positive growth and development and success in school. Without the proper access to healthy foods (rather than processed foods) from a young age, a child's brains will develop differently, they will be more prone to obesity, more susceptible to juvenile diabetes, and less likely to succeed in school. One fact to take away: 1 in every 4 children in the United States goes hungry every day.
A second key point was regarding the lack of a comprehensive food policy in the United States that works. The poor laws currently in place, including subsidies for agribusiness that produce the main ingredients in unhealthy foods rather than small, family farms that often produce quality fruits and vegetables, ever-changing funding for programs to help the needy and affect change, are negatively impacting many facets of our nation including education attainment and security. While I'm just touching on the points made and not explaining in detail their interconnectedness, it is extremely important to understand why this will be one of the defining issues of my generation, and the generations to follow.
The bright spot in this documentary highlighted faith and community-based groups and school teachers, who are largely responsible for trying to fill the gap between what government subsidies provide, and what a family has and needs for regular access to food. It never ceases to amaze me how the goodwill and compassion of others, who truly work to benefit their communities, far outweighs the work of our elected leaders, who often claim to hold office for that very reason. (I realize that last sentence is a bit of a political rant, but whatevs, this is my blog.) I salute those groups and dedicated individuals, and specifically in A Place At The Table, the Plateau Valley Assembly of God in Collbran, Colorado, which you can read a bit about here.
If you're looking for a good movie to watch, I highly recommend A Place At The Table.