Hunger Hits Black Communities Harder

February is dedicated as Black History Month, honoring the triumphs and struggles of Black Americans throughout U.S. history. The San Antonio Food Bank seeks to deepen our understanding and perspective on the challenges of those we serve, many of which are rooted in long-standing patterns of social inequities, exclusions, and divisions.

Black communities consistently face hunger at higher rates due to social, economic, and environmental challenges. In 2020, 24% of Black individuals experienced food insecurity – more than three times the rate of white households.

• Discriminatory policies and practices have led Black people to be more likely to live in poverty, more likely to face unemployment, and have fewer financial resources like savings or property than their white counterparts. All of these factors increase someone’s likelihood to experience hunger.
• Due to the pandemic, food insecurity in the Black community increased. An estimated 24% of the Black community experienced food insecurity in 2020. Black children are almost three times more likely to live in a food-insecure household than white children.
• Black people, especially Black women, are more likely to be essential frontline workers and more likely to work in the industries hardest hit by the pandemic.
• The median income for Black households is roughly $46,000 per year while non-Hispanic, white households earned a median income of roughly $71,000 per year.
• While the United States has an overall poverty rate of 11.4%, within the Black community, the poverty rate is 19.5%. Meanwhile, poverty in the non-Hispanic, white community is 10.1%.

To address food insecurity in Black communities, the San Antonio Food Bank is working locally to build a SecureSA and alongside national organizations like Feeding America continue to work towards addressing the root causes of these persistent inequalities.

Source: Feeding America, Hunger In America