"So, when her Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) benefits didn't arrive at the start of November, due to the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history, her options for finding food were limited to the small radius she could walk. "I walked to the senior place," Grier said, referring to the local senior center in her neighborhood. "I was too late for the seniors' place, because breakfast was over, so basically, for a couple of days here, I was kind of pretty messed up.""
"Grier is among the nearly 1.8 million New York City residents who receive federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, also known as food stamps, which help low-income households afford groceries. And while the federal government officially reopened Thursday, local SNAP recipients who depend on the benefits had to navigate empty refrigerators and cabinets for more than a week, uncertain about where their next meals would come from."
""They don't understand that," said Diana Gatham, a resident of NYCHA's Woodside Houses who uses SNAP to feed her three-person household. "They don't feel for us. I'm saying it's not right. Once upon a time, I used to work too. I had it all. But now I'm on disability. I have hardly nothing." Following a court ruling earlier this week, New York began distributing funds to local SNAP recipients on Nov. 9 and 10,"
Federal shutdown delayed SNAP EBT payments for more than a week in New York City, forcing recipients to cope with empty refrigerators and limited food options. Mobility-limited seniors like 67-year-old Pinkie Grier could only walk a couple of blocks and missed free meals, leaving them without food for days. Nearly 1.8 million New Yorkers rely on SNAP to afford groceries, and disabled and low-income households reported acute hardship. Following a court ruling, New York began distributing SNAP funds on Nov. 9 and 10 through the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. All city beneficiaries had received full benefits by Friday.
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