Meet the Black Women Working to End Food Insecurity

By Anissa Durham, Word in Black

For Black families who celebrate it, Thanksgiving is typically a day to give thanks and feast over a large meal of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and yams. But, during this holiday season, rates of food insecurity have hit the Black community especially hard.  

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A recent survey by IRi found that the average cost for turkey, pie filling, potatoes, and butter increased between 10% to 34% this November.  

At the same time, there’s also the uncanny aftermath of a large meal unfinished: leftovers. Every year, about 200 million pounds of turkey meat is discarded after Thanksgiving Day. And, 48 million pounds of sweet potatoes, 40 million pounds of mashed potatoes, and 38 million pounds of stuffing are wasted every year, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. 

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Ami McReynolds has spent the last three years as the chief equity officer for Feeding America, one of the largest nonprofit organizations working to end hunger. With a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks, the months of November and December are some of the busiest times for the organization.  

Across their network of food banks, partners, and the community, there is an increase during this time of year — something that the organization regularly prepares for. McReynolds says she understands families want to be able to enjoy large gatherings with food at the center and with people they love — but that can be difficult with inflation causing folks to make tough financial decisions. 

Read about this organization.

Food insecurity is also a problem for children, who don’t have access to school meals during summer.

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