SNAP And Medicaid Are Under Attack—But Black Communities Are Building Their Own Safety Nets
By Teon Hayes
In this op-ed for Essence Magazine, Teon breaks down how benefit cuts are widening gaps—and why community-led solutions remain our strongest line of defense.
Excerpt:
As programs like Medicaid and SNAP face unprecedented cuts and restrictions, one truth rings louder than ever: the answer has always been us.
Black and Brown communities have built systems of care and resistance for centuries, long before government safety nets existed. From Harriet Tubman’s freedom networks to Mary McLeod Bethune’s schools; from the Black Panther Party’s Free Breakfast Program to Black and Indigenous traditions of disability justice, food sharing, and healing rooted in collective care, we have always built what we needed to survive, resist, and thrive…
