“Hunger hurts us all”, The Chronicle
Rebecca Quackenbush, Gosen and Chester, NY, June 16, 2017
Fifth graders in the classes of teachers Rebecca Quackenbush of Goshen Central School and Isabella Bachanas of Chester Union Free School District recently observed June 6, Local Heroes Day, by exploring the crisis of world hunger. A student essay, published below, and other activities to honor the day are explained by Ms. Quackenbush:
We wrote this piece to spread the word about World Hunger. After reading through several newspapers, my students and I noticed that not much attention is given to the issue, and yet the United Nations estimates around 25,000 children die daily from hunger or hunger-related diseases. In the United States alone, 13 million children go to bed hungry every night!
“Throughout this year, my students and I have studied the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We have delved deeply into the history of the document as well as ways that the outlined rights have been upheld and challenged throughout history and today.
We are currently immersed in a unit on World Hunger…what it is, the root causes, and what is/what is not being done about it…
On June 6, our Local Heroes Day, my children connected with people who are working in a variety of ways to help the environment as well as others become healthy and self-reliant. These include, but were not limited to: working in a soup kitchen, food pantry, shelters, caring for the elderly, growing community gardens, creating jobs, training unemployed people for new jobs, ending racism and discrimination, reporting on the causes of hunger, lobbying government, designing legislation, various environmental causes, etc.
I want my students to see the very important fact that we can all make a difference. Everyone’s skills, ideas, talents, and labor are necessary. Ultimately, I want them to begin thinking about what they might bring to the movement by considering what they are good at and what they like — writing, drawing, speaking, singing, working one-on-one with the elderly, working with land, making videos, etc.
In addition to our June 6 event, this article the students collectively wrote contains so much hope for a better tomorrow. We hope that you will consider publishing.
Together we can end itThe United Nations estimates around 25,000 children die daily from hunger or hunger-related diseases.
We’re writing to give voice to people in our world who are hungry. Newspapers rarely publish headlines or articles related to hunger. Why is that?
Whether in class, traffic, or work, look around; about 1 in 8 people face hunger. It could be a friend, neighbor, or even stranger passing. You would never know it; people who are hungry often don’t “look” hungry.
Emaciated bodies that draw most attention on TV and newspapers often result from famine from war or natural disasters, and account for 10 percent of the estimated 20 million hunger deaths. The other 90 percent not portrayed in media result from chronic hunger, the long-term consumption of too few nutrients.
UN studies show the world produces more than enough food for everyone on the planet, and yet…people are still hungry. Why is that?
Food banks, soup kitchens, and school lunches are wonderful programs that exist to help with the problem of hunger.
We need to elect government officials who advocate for women’s empowerment; fair wages; and a true democracy for all races and ethnicities. We need to support local farmers and buy Fair Trade certified products that give premiums to field workers in other countries who harvest items we consume.
Transformation begins at the roots. Ms. Q. taught us about human rights and what it means to be human; we learned true super heroes don’t wear capes and fly. True super heroes are people like you and me, who care to do something, because we can. Let’s start conversations that lead to commitments of long term solutions. Hunger hurts us all. Together we can end it.