The Weaponization of Food

My shirt is stained with baby throw-up and snot. The coffee brews while my newborn grunts in her sleep and my oldest splashes water on his face before school.I step out onto the stoop, fluffy navy-blue nightgown wrapped around that same stained shirt, and cradle my ghost-covered mug - black, chipped, perfectly mine.The morning feels ordinary until my phone lights up.

Listen to the Audio Version Here.

A notification from my benefits app flashes across the screen:

“Due to the government shutdown, your November SNAP benefits could be unavailable.”

It sinks in immediately.

I’ve seen the rumors on TikTok - endless videos warning it might happen - but seeing it in my app, from the source itself, hits differently. This isn’t hypothetical anymore.

No Kings Day

Today happens to be No Kings Day - a day meant to resist the rise of wannabe monarchs and their elite-serving rule.

The irony is thick.

White folks are out doing the cha-cha slide in costume “for the revolution,” while their neighbors are calculating how to stretch this month’s groceries into next month’s uncertainty.

In the so-called land of the free, I feel stranded.

What a Shutdown Really Means

A government shutdown happens when Congress fails to pass a spending bill to fund federal operations. When that money freezes, so do the programs it supports - including SNAP and WIC.

This shutdown began on October 1, 2025, after Congress couldn’t agree on a budget.

For people like me, that means one thing: No benefits. No safety net. No food.

America loves to call itself the “land of opportunity,” but when you’re a disabled Black parent trying to keep three kids fed on one income, you learn quick: this country could not care less about its most vulnerable people.

As a kid, I was raised to believe in patriotism. We sang “Proud to Be an American” every morning. I still remember the words.

Now, I’m just trying to figure out how to feed my family in the same country that told me I was lucky to be born here.

Living in the Stereotype

I’ve been called a “Welfare Queen.”

After being removed from SSI, I rely on food stamps and WIC to survive. My partner works full-time, but it’s paycheck to paycheck - enough for the bills, never enough for groceries.

So when the app says “Benefits may be at risk,” what it’s really saying is:“Your kids’ fridge and cabinets will go empty.”

TikTok says the cuts could stretch into December. We have just $18 left on our EBT card. I’m searching online for how to stretch food that already doesn’t stretch.

Grocery shopping has turned into survival math - needs over wants.

• Saving McDonald’s points for one small treat for the kids.

• Skipping meals so their stomachs stay full.

• Learning to reuse and reinvent leftovers just to make them last.

• Some nights, preparing to sleep through the hunger pains.

This is the reality of a “shutdown.”

Maslow’s Hierarchy in Real Life

Psychologist Abraham Maslow said food comes first - before safety, belonging, or anything else.

When the government withholds food, it’s not just hunger. It’s collapse.

Every layer of that pyramid crumbles - security, connection, self-esteem, even the will to dream.

Families like mine aren’t supposed to “wait it out” with empty pantries.Children aren’t supposed to rely on school lunch as their only meal of the day.

This isn’t survival of the fittest. It’s survival of the forgotten.

Other Moms Are Feeling It Too

I asked other moms who rely on SNAP and WIC how they’re preparing. Here’s what one shared:

“Being a single mom with no job right now, 100% of my grocery budget depends on benefits. I only found out about the risk a few days ago on the Benefits Cal website. That’s barely a warning.”

“My only means of supporting my children and myself while I job-hunt is SNAP and CalWorks. No benefits would be devastating. It’s something I worry about every hour now.”

“People assume moms like me ‘want’ to live off the government, or that we have more kids for ‘free money.’ Most of them have never had to make a choice between bills and food. In reality, the help we get isn’t enough to survive - just enough to keep us exhausted.”

“I shouldn’t have to depend on the choices of people who can’t relate to my situation just to feed my kids.”

Her words echo what so many of us are too tired - or too ashamed - to say out loud.

The Truth About “Weaponizing Food”

Whether through neglect or design, using hunger as leverage in a political fight is a form of weaponization.

When politicians stall, debate, and posture while millions of families lose access to food, that’s not democracy - that’s cruelty disguised as bureaucracy.

SNAP might hold out a few weeks if the USDA reprograms emergency funds, but WIC usually runs out within days. For infants and toddlers, that means no formula. For parents, it means panic.

This isn’t an accident. It’s a policy choice.

So What Can You Do?

If you’ve read this far, don’t just scroll - act.

• Join or start a Meal Train.

• Make an extra plate for the single parent next door.

• Donate foods kids actually eat.

• Stock or start a community fridge in your area.

• Pack an extra lunch for your kid’s classmate.

• Offer rides to the food bank for parents without transportation.

• Donate to cover groceries for my family while I keep writing - or to help another anonymous mom hit by the shutdown.

Venmo: @madamefrancis (Please include a note if your donation is for groceries - mine or the anonymous mom’s.)

Because hunger shouldn’t be normal.And no parent should have to go without.

The Bottom Line

I’m not asking for luxury.I’m asking for butter and meat.

People donate to make sure animals don’t go hungry.Even prisoners get three meals a day.

So why are kids - American kids - going to bed hungry because politicians couldn’t do their jobs?

If hunger is now acceptable collateral damage, what does that say about this country?

If there’s “no money” to feed us, will there be money to house us next?

The government is weaponizing food.And we’re the ones left starving.