[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 27 (Tuesday, February 26, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H637]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          A PLACE AT THE TABLE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, once again, I rise to talk about the issue 
of hunger in America. There are over 50 million Americans who go hungry 
each year. That is about one in every six Americans who don't know 
where their next meal is coming from on any given day. Mr. Speaker, in 
the richest, most prosperous country in the world, that is 
unconscionable. Unfortunately, too many people simply don't know that 
there's a hunger problem in the United States. But that is going to 
change with a new documentary called ``A Place at the Table.''

                              {time}  1050

  Mr. Speaker, this powerful film shows how hunger actually affects 
everyday Americans. Specifically, ``A Place at the Table,'' documents 
people from all walks of life--from inner-city Philadelphia to rural 
Colorado--and it shows how they struggle not just to put healthy food 
on their kitchen tables, but in some cases to put any food on their 
tables at all.
  The film doesn't just show how people struggle with food. It shows 
how the lack of food impacts the health of children and the capacity 
for kids to pay attention and learn in class.
  In all candor, Mr. Speaker, I play a small part in this film, and I'm 
pleased the filmmakers allowed me to give my thoughts on the problem of 
hunger in America in ways that we can address it. But this film is not 
about my opinions; it's about the challenge facing the people in this 
movie. It's about how our country got to the place where over 50 
million people--or one in six Americans--are food insecure or hungry. 
It's about how our legislative policies are not meeting the needs of 
the hungry, especially as low- and middle-income families continue to 
struggle during this economic recovery. It's about how parents and 
grandparents are trying to take care of their families, but are falling 
short of doing it on their own. It's about how private organizations 
like churches and synagogues and food banks are trying to fill the 
gaps, but are struggling to do so because the need is so great. 
Ultimately, it's about how we as a Nation have the chance to rise up 
and end hunger now. It's about how we can and must develop a plan to 
end hunger now.
  Mr. Speaker, we have the means to end hunger now. We have the food to 
end hunger now. We have the knowledge to end hunger now. We just 
haven't mustered the political will to end hunger now, and we--Members 
of Congress--should all be ashamed that one person, let alone over 50 
million, goes hungry in America.
  In 1968, CBS News broadcast an hour-long program called ``Hunger in 
America.'' It reshaped the view of hunger in this country. The day 
after that show aired, then-Senator George McGovern formed the Senate 
Select Committee on Nutrition and worked with Senator Bob Dole and 
President Richard Nixon to reduce hunger in America. They almost 
eradicated it completely, but we've clearly regressed in the decades 
since.
  I hope ``A Place at the Table,'' this critically important film, is 
the catalyst that jump-starts a new effort to end hunger now. I believe 
we need White House leadership on this issue, and I urge President 
Obama to watch this film and to follow up with a White House conference 
on food and nutrition in order to tackle all of the issues associated 
with hunger and nutrition and specifically to come up with a 
coordinated, unified plan to end hunger now. President Obama's 
leadership is critical if we're going to end hunger now.
  Directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush, along with executive 
producer Tom Colicchio, have made a film that tells a powerful story. 
It's a story of a struggle in America, but a struggle that we can 
overcome. It's a struggle to address a problem that we have the answer 
to. It's my hope that this film will spark a new movement to address 
both hunger and obesity and nutritional issues so that we no longer see 
people struggling to put food on their table.
  ``A Place at the Table'' is hard to watch because we all share the 
blame for the struggles faced by those in the film. I challenge anyone 
who watches it to walk away feeling unaffected. I've seen it many times 
already. I've been inspired by the individuals who are featured in the 
movie, people who struggle in poverty with great difficulty and who 
struggle with great dignity.
  I'm also frustrated and angered by this film. It shows our failures--
our moral failures--to end the scourge of hunger. The title of the film 
is appropriate. We all have our place at the table, and we need to take 
that place in order to end hunger now.

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