Bread Blog

Book Review: The rising of Bread for the World by Arthur Simon

2009-11-07T09:17:06-05:00

By Mike Hiland

I have been involved with Bread for the World for 25 years now. The organization has helped shape a lot about who I am and what I believe. Arthur Simon is the founder of Bread for the World and its first president. This book is the story of the founding of Bread for the World, and a couple of things jumped out at me and made me want to write a review.

It's fascinating to me how a Lutheran pastor who grew up in Oregon came to found an anti-hunger organization. He lists important things in his life that led him along this path. But it's amazing to see all the little things and realize how easily this never could have happened. There are so many forks in the road of life.

The fundamental humility of Arthur Simon comes out in the book. He mentions that this is not a "warts and all' book, but he does go through his shortcomings and setbacks. It's a lesson that would serve all of us well. Life tends to make you humble over time if you pay attention to it; a little more humility might help us understand our shortcomings better and live a more successful life.

The key insights behind Bread are:

Christians have for years done good work with private aid, but to be effective we must become public policy advocates as well. Hunger is too big an issue to be tackled by private aid or public programs alone.
Bread is rooted in the Christian faith and the churches. Christians have a calling to help the poor and take action relying on their faith. It adds a unique, sincere, and powerful voice to the effort.
Getting legislative action around hunger depends on letters and calls from constituents. It is the only power Bread has, and the history of the organization shows the powerful results it can achieve.

Art chronicles some of Bread's successes over the years. Bread always works together with other partner organizations, but with these initiatives in particular, Bread has played a leading role:

Foreign

Emergency and farmer-owned grain reserve (1977 & 1978). Faster response to famine. Has saved millions of lives over the years, distributing enough food to feed 100 million for nearly half a year.
Child Survival (1980s). U.S. funding for UNICEF's five low-cost child survival measures: promoting breast feeding, growth charts, immunization, oral rehydration, micro nutrients (vitamins). Saves $5 million per year. Has helped reduce the global daily death rate of children from 40,000 to 26,000 (still too high).
Jubilee debt relief (1999). Joined the global campaign for debt relief. Achieved the first real US commitment for debt relief, allowing poor countries to divert their resources from debt payment, to spending in education and health.
Reversed the long-term decline in foreign aid. We are starting to see steady yearly increases in poverty focused development assistance (Helped found the ONE organization, which promoted a 1% increase in Foreign aid. The Jubilee campaign started the momentum that led to this).

Domestic

WIC program, started in 1974, provides nutritious food to 8 million mothers and children in the U.S. It increases the health of children in their most vulnerable years. More work to do; only 60% of eligible are covered.
Support for the EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit). The increases in the early 1990s moved 4 million out of poverty in the U.S.
Defended food stamps from deeper cuts and block granting to the states. The program still suffered deep cuts during the 1980s and 1995 during welfare reform. Slowly it has regained some of this lost ground. The monthly benefit is still too small to meet a families need. $0.60/meal/day.

Bread also faced some long term challenges and many obstacles:

Fighting long-term decline in foreign aid. especially agricultural development (which is just now being reversed). Decline started in 1970s, continued through 1980s and 1990s. The 1980's in particular was a lost decade: US military aid doubled, poor country spending in health declined 25%, in education 50%.
Defensive battles of Reagan years: Increase in tax cuts and military led to increased deficits and cuts to programs. They sought a 40% reduction in child nutrition programs, 1 million forced off food stamps in early years. A lot of defensive work needed to limit the impact of cuts. Overall inflation adjusted funding for food prgrams dropped 5%, childhood poverty increased 21%. But their were successes in funding for WIC and the EITC.
Harvest of Peace - The hope was that the end of the Cold War would produce a peace dividend that could be partly used for development assistance. The first Gulf War reversed this hope
Welfare reform of the mid 1990s. Produced some greater self sufficiency, but drastic cuts to food stamps and lack of investment in education and training meant that most remained trapped in poverty.

Current challenges

Food crisis and global recession. 100 million more people are poor around the world due to the current global recession.
Emerging poor & sustainability. Need to find ways for countries emerging from poverty to develop in a sustainable manner that doesnt overload resources and produce huge gaps in income.
Continuing the current president of Bread for the Worlds (David Beckmann) commitment to change the politics of hunger and create a broader, larger movement that can lead us to a world where large scale hunger is a thing of the past.

Art Simon founded an organization that over the years contributed to the saving of millions of lives. It's quite a legacy and achievement. We are slowly moving to an exodus from hunger. We need to continue the progress until we reach the promise land where freedom from hunger is the norm.

(The author is a Bread for the World activist in Portland, Ore.)

Lobbying in Los Angeles for Foreign Aid Reform

2009-10-27T16:46:57-04:00

Photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/chucksimmins/ / CC BY 2.0

By Cameron Shaw, Bread for the World Organizing Intern

On Monday, I went on my first lobby visit as part of my internship with Bread for the World. The purpose was to convince Senator Dianne Feinstein to co sponsor S. 1524, the Foreign Assistance Reform and Revitalization Act. Two Bread staff members (Holly and Sonia), 5 community leaders (Wanda, Jane, Wayne, Vickie and Connie) and I met with one of her staff for about forty-five minutes to discuss the bill. This was an urgent meeting, because the bill was due to be marked up the next day. A markup is when the committee gets together to analyze a bill and make changes.

We set the stage by telling personal stories. Wanda recounted how aid had lifted her family out of poverty during the Depression. Thanks to the aid, they went from barely subsisting on beans to eating balanced meals. I discussed my experiences during my semester abroad in Senegal. I pointed out that very little money can have a huge impact on the lives of the poor. Jane told us about her friend who had been badly injured in a bombing on the UN. She argued that having opportunities and basic necessities will reduce violence. Wayne, a Lutheran preacher, shared his experiences aiding displaced Colombian women and children. According to him, aid is most effective when it is targeted at women.

Next we told her staff about the bill - S. 1524. Jane, a member of the South Coast Interfaith Council, facilitated the meeting. She highlighted the good points of the bill. The bill updates our foreign aid laws, encouraging establishing some new agencies, strengthening old ones, and demanding that foreign aid information be made public. It establishes a Council on Research and Evaluation of Foreign Assistance (CORE), whose function is to evaluate US foreign aid. Additionally, USAID does not have enough staff or resources to do their job adequately. Thus, this bill creates a Bureau for Policy and Strategic Planning within USAID that focuses on U.S. development policy and researches the effectiveness of development aid. Most importantly, it increases transparency by requiring the President to make all information on US foreign assistance public.

Finally, we pressed the staff about why the Senator had not yet cosponsored such a non- controversial piece of legislation. The staff member told us that she was waiting for the markup. We later found out that the bill’s markup had been postponed for a week. To wrap the meeting up, we gave the senator's office 7 hand written letters from Sonia, her students, and me.

If I took anything away from the meeting, it was importance of organization. Having a designated facilitator really helped push the meeting forward. The twenty minutes before the meeting in which we asked each other “what part of the bill is most important to you? What part do you want to discuss?” were essential. Each person spoke about his or her passion rather than just another segment.

Cameron Shaw is a senior at Pomona College. She is interning this fall with Bread for the World's Pasadena Regional Office.

A Busy Two Days in Birmingham for David Beckmann

2009-10-26T17:18:44-04:00

By Elaine VanCleave

On the morning of Sept 23, 2009, Bread for the World's president David Beckmann and other faith leaders organized a procession in full clerical regalia through the streets of Pittsburgh as part of the Faith Leaders Summit held as a precursor to the G20 meetings in that city.

Rev. Beckmann reflected on the significance of the morning’s activities later that evening at a presentation entitled Exodus from Hunger at Birmingham Southern College (BSC) in Birmingham, AL. The BFW president was a featured speaker during BSC’s Dialogue on Food week.

His presentation followed a student organized Hunger Banquet, where diners experienced the inequalities of global hunger. Beckmann’s inspirational message resulted in 65 letters to Rep. Spencer Bachus, a leader on global poverty and hunger issues.

Alabama Bread for the World members organized several additional opportunities for Rev. Beckmann to speak while in Birmingham. Beckmann began September 24 with an appearance on Fox 6’s Good Day Alabama with host Rick Journey.

Then, he was off to Dawson Memorial Baptist Church in Homewood for an informal breakfast meeting with the social justice ministry committee.

From there, Beckmann attended and spoke at a lunch at Independent Presbyterian Church for members of the Alabama Faith Council, a group of Alabama faith leaders.

Beckmann concluded his visit to Birmingham at Our Lady of the Valley Church in Shelby County where he spoke to Just Faith graduates and current students.

Throughout Beckmann’s two-day Alabama blitz, he spoke of Bread for the World’s efforts to improve the quality and effectiveness of US foreign assistance as a way to eliminate poverty in God’s world. “The sighs of people who can’t feed their children are holy. God Almighty is with people who are struggling. As citizens in a democracy, we can participate in what God is doing,” he said.

(The author is a Bread for the World activist in Birmingham, Ala.)

Birmingham Holds Hunger Banquet, Stands Up Against Poverty to Help Set Guinness Record

2009-10-23T12:15:50-04:00

On Sunday, October 18, more than 150 diners in Birmingham, Ala., got a taste of global food inequity at a “hunger banquet” hosted by Rogue Tavern and supported by local celebrities and businesses.

Organized by local leaders of national anti-poverty groups Bread for the World, Care, and the ONE Campaign, the hunger banquet was the Birmingham groups’ unique way to observe the fourth annual, worldwide “Stand Up, Take Action, End Poverty Now!” mobilization on the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

Diners at the Birmingham hunger banquet, along with millions of people around the world, literally stood up and called on world leaders to eradicate extreme poverty.

Coordinators for the global “Stand Up” effort announced that its 173 million participants around the world broke the Guinness World record for greatest number of human beings ever mobilized on the planet.

To highlight the scope of global hunger, the Rogue Tavern was transformed into three worlds, divided according to the global distribution of wealth. Diners were seated according to tickets distributed randomly at the entrance:

Fifteen percent of the diners received a gourmet meal prepared by Chef Haller Magee of Satterfield's, at white cloth, candle-lit tables, served by celebrity waiters Scott Register and Joel Pryor, and serenaded by a violinist.
Thirty-five percent of the diners sat at tables of rustic, all-weather furniture after serving themselves rice and beans from a buffet line.
The remaining fifty percent of the attendees ate white rice while sitting on benches or burlap coffee bags on the floor of an area decorated with hay bales and trees to resemble the outdoors.

The message behind the hunger banquet was well-received by participants—even those who were not served a high-end meal. “I really needed that,” said Live 100.5’s Scott Register, who waited on the 15 percent of diners lucky enough to get a gourmet meal.

The experience was “very sobering, and makes you count your blessings,” he said. In addition to the meal, banqueters learned about global hunger and poverty and made the “Stand Up” pledge to support the Millennium Development Goals, a global pact to cut in half global hunger, poverty, and disease by 2015.

Many attendees took immediate action with their cell phones by calling Senator Richard Shelby and asking him to support the Global Food Security Act, S. 384. Looking beyond the tragic reality of global hunger, Dr. Suzanne Martin of Samford University said she was struck by “the groundswell of hope within the international community that we can eradicate extreme poverty in this generation.”

Martin, a volunteer with Bread for the World, led the Stand Up pledge in Birmingham for the fourth consecutive year. “Standing up and speaking words of hope is an energizing and convicting way to recommit to doing all we can do,” she said.

Food for the event was provided by Satterfield's, Cantina, Jim ‘n Nick's, and California Pizza Kitchen at Riverchase Galleria.

Although some banqueters ate better than others, everyone heard Jon Poor play acoustic guitar and sing as people arrived. Servants in Faith and Technology (SIFAT) students from countries around the world closed the evening with an a capella performance. The Banquet was emceed by former Magic 96.5 WMJJ-FM radio personality and local actress Jil Friday.

Submitted by Elaine VanCleave

Video Postcard for Senators Cantwell and Murray: Support S. 1524 to Make Foreign Aid More Effective

2009-09-22T19:52:43-04:00

(Submitted by Matt Newell-Ching)

Some Good News on Goal 4 of the Millennium Development Goals

2009-09-10T19:21:16-04:00

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported today that child mortality had fallen over the past two decades to 65 per 1,000 live births. That is indeed good news! This is quite an improvement from 1990, when 93 out of every 1,000 children under the age of 5 died.

So what has the global community done to help bring the child mortality rate down? An article in The New York Times entitled Child Mortality Rate Declines Globally mentions some of the reasons for the improvements

"The child mortality rate has declined...in large part because of the widening distribution of relatively inexpensive technologies like measles vaccines and ant-malaria nets.

Other simple practices have helped, public health experts say, including a rise in breast feeding alone for the first six months of life, which protects children from diarrhea caused by dirty water."

The Times said the global community has also come through with funding, with wealthy nations, international agencies and philantropists like Bill and Melinda Gates contributing billions of dollars to the effort.

"School children and church groups have also pitched in, paying for mosquito nets and feeding programs," said the article.

Is it possible to meet Goal 4 of the Millennium Development Goals? The goal is to reduce child mortality to 31 out of every 1,000 live births by 2015. The answer is a resounding yes if the global community continues its support for measures that have worked well thus far.

Lobbying on climate change and foreign aid reform

2009-09-02T14:43:57-04:00

On Tuesday, LA ONE volunteers met with a staff member from Senator Feinstein’s office. Keith, ONE member from Santa Clarita, introduced our group and provided a history of ONE’s advocacy to end extreme poverty. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the impact of climate change on the world’s poorest countries and U.S. foreign assistance reform. Sally, a member of First Presbyterian Church of Granada Hills, asked the senator to support funding for developing countries to adapt to climate change. The representative from Senator Feinstein’s office said the climate change bill will likely be introduced near the end of the fall.

Amy Quinn, Volunteer Team Leader for ONE, provided a history of ONE’s work in Los Angeles and thanked Senator Feinstein for supporting life-saving programs for people living on less than one dollar a day. Amy also spoke about the pressing need to reform our U.S. foreign assistance. “As people who advocate for an increase in foreign aid, we want to know that those dollars are used in the best way possible. Foreign aid reform is one way to do that. Reform efforts will not only make our aid more effective in the fight against poverty, but also more transparent,” said Amy. Holly Hight, California field organizer with Bread for the World, asked Senator Feinstein to cosponsor S. 1524 – the Foreign Assistance Revitalization and Accountability Act of 2009. The bill was introduced in late July by Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) along with Ranking Member Richard Lugar (R-IN). She explained that the bill will strengthen funding for the United States Agency for International Development and provide accountability mechanisms to ensure aid effectiveness.

Finally, Glen Peterson from Whittier Community Church shared a moving story of how his church mobilized around one community in Malawi. A few years ago, the congregation participated in the Leadership Summit where they saw a video with Bono and Bill Hybels. Bono challenged the church everywhere to do more in the fight to reduce global poverty, hunger and disease. In response, Whittier Community Church partnered with a local community in Malawi to build a clinic. The church asked for donations to build the clinic and people generously responded. In the end, the church raised over $600,000 to build the clinic and provide medical support for the community. A father in Malawi said that his daughter would not have health care if it wasn’t for this facility. The entire group was moved by this story of faith in action.

In the end, we asked the representative, “What can we do to continue to raise awareness about this topic and connect with your office about it?” He encouraged us to continue to write letters, make phone calls and do what we are doing – meet with the office. He said, “Writing a letter is the most effective way to communicate with our office. A hand-written letter is best.” ONE volunteers throughout the state will continue to advocate for these issues in the coming months.

On Changing the World: One Phone Call at a Time

2009-08-04T20:23:43-04:00

Me in Budapest (not related to the post, but it is me nonetheless)

   I recently decided to invite a group of high school friends over for a small party/BBQ. I have not seen most of them for almost a year, and despite many efforts by others to get us all together, the summer was quickly approaching its end. Finally, I said to heck with it, and within 15 minutes had contacted everyone I wanted, received confirmations for most of them, and had commitments for food and beverages. By the end of the day I had confirmations from everyone, for the next day no less. When I told one of my friends, he was flabbergasted: “We’ve been trying this for the whole summer and nothing has actually happened.” To which I replied: “Man, I have been an organizing intern at Bread for the World for the whole summer. If there is anything I know how to do its make phone calls and get people to do stuff.”
    I was asked to write a quick blog post to sum up my internship here, and in true college student style I am doing it with around an hour to go. So as I type madly, attempting to diligently fulfill this last request, I really cannot help but realize the truly amazing experiences that I have had while working here. It has been a remarkable summer.
    I have made more phone calls this summer than anyone in their right mind makes in a year. Requesting meetings, asking Bread members to make more phone calls in order to get Congressmen (and women) to sign on to cosponsor H.R. 2139 (which got 100 cosponsors yay! Thanks to all who put up with me interrupting their afternoons and made the call), requesting information on Offerings of Letters, making sure that my recent attempts at journalism meet Bread’s standards, etc. etc. The phone and I are now best of friends, and bitter enemies.
    Whether it be typing up a new blog post, doing the research for said blog post, doing research in general about foreign aid reform, or sending yet another e-mail request to that recalcitrant Congressman, my computer and I have also spent countless hours together. Though we remain friends, it is often a tense relationship, especially when dealing with an Excel spreadsheet or a troublesome Word document.
    Oh, and the traffic, let’s not forget Los Angeles rush-hour traffic! Phew!
    Of course I exaggerate my sorrows, for they serve as a brilliant foil to my joys. I have had the chance to meet with 5 different congressional offices, meet a top foreign policy staffer, experience a weekend of learning and advocacy in Washington D.C., help to celebrate 35 years of Bread for the World’s mission, learn more about foreign aid than I ever could have imagined, help an important bill gain traction, and have gained real experience working as an organizer for an organization that does an incredible amount of good in this world.
    What Bread for the World does is not sexy. It’s not one of the media-friendly causes that people love to read about. It is long, hard work. It is a movement for real change in the lives of the hungry, and it is a cause that, while it may take decades, actually can make a difference. But it takes the work of dedicated people; people who understand that this work is a slow grind against the structures of a world that does not want change. A world that believes in complacency while others suffer, a world that says, in no uncertain terms: “You are but one person, you cannot change anything.” I will say right now, one person makes all the difference. One call can change the mind of one Congressman, who can change the mind of a committee, which can change the mind of the House, which can change the mind of the U.S. Government, which can change the mind of the world.
    I want to thank Bread for the World for showing me the true power of the grassroots and the power that one person has to break the stagnancy of the world.

Kaj Pedersen is an international relations major at Claremont McKenna College in California, he has been interning at the California Regional Office of Bread for the World for the summer. He now is retiring in order to write papers and run desperately everyday in an attempt to get in shape for football season.

100!

2009-08-04T14:43:32-04:00

It has truly been an exciting couple of weeks for Bread for the World and all those concerned with fighting hunger. Our goal of 100 Co-sponsors for the Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act (H.R. 2139) has been reached! Thank you to all who wrote, called, or visited your representatives, it is through your efforts that this goal has been reached, and through which the movement in support of the poor and hungry continues unabated.

But your work is not done yet! While 100 was our goal, more co-sponsors means that more people all across the nation support these reforms. The larger the contingent of people supporting this bill becomes, the more likely it is that true reform happens. Furthermore, Senators Kerry (D-MA) and Lugar (R-IN) along with 4 other members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee have introduced a companion bill, the Foreign Assistance Revitalization and Accountability Act of 2009 (S. 1524), calling for an increase in USAID recruitment and the creation of various monitoring bodies. Not only does the introduction of this bill show the power of the citizen in setting the agenda, it also shows a willingness all around Congress to push for reform. Keep up the good work, keep the pressure on, and keep fighting to improve the lives of the poor and hungry all around the world.

(Sample letters for both the House and the Senate can be found here)

Bread for the World Urges Senators To Pass Initial Aid Reform Bill

2009-07-29T09:00:00-04:00

Washington, DC, July 28, 2009 –Bread for the World President Rev. David Beckmann urged members of the Senate to promptly pass a bill introduced today aimed at revitalizing the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The bipartisan bill -- the Foreign Assistance Revitalization and Accountability Act of 2009 (S.1524) -- was introduced by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA), Ranking Member Richard Lugar (R-IN), and Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Bob Corker (R-TN), Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Jim Risch (R-ID).

“Revitalizing USAID is crucial to the overall reform of U.S. foreign assistance,” said Rev. Beckmann. “If the Obama Administration and Congress improve the effectiveness of U.S. foreign assistance, our dollars will do more good for decades to come.”

USAID was created to lead U.S. development efforts and was once the premier development agency in the world. However, after years of benign neglect and proliferating aid programs across the U.S. government, USAID has lost much of its professional capacity, expertise and authority.

The bill includes a formal statement that it is U.S. policy to promote global development, good governance, and the reduction of poverty and hunger. It contains provisions for restoring planning, policy, and evaluation capacities to USAID. It also lays out new transparency measures for U.S. foreign assistance.

Rev. Beckmann, who is also co-chair of the Modernizing Foreign Aid Network, called for the immediate appointment of an administrator for USAID. He said that an administrator should be in place to provide a development perspective as the State Department institutes a quadrennial review and develops a blueprint for U.S. diplomatic and development efforts.

He cautioned that without a USAID administrator, the State Department’s review has the potential to blur the important distinction between diplomacy and development. “When we
try to achieve development and diplomatic goals with the same dollars, aid is usually much less effective in reducing poverty,” said Rev. Beckmann.

The Senate bill introduced today complements the efforts of House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA-28) and his initial aid reform bill, H.R. 2139, which currently has 91 bipartisan cosponsors.

Rev. Beckmann added that the White House, the State Department, and USAID should work closely with the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in order to coordinate foreign aid reform efforts.

Bread for the World is a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad.