By Stacey Patton

“A Picture is worth a thousand words.”  So goes that familiar adage.

Since the late 1800s some of the most brilliant photographers have used pictures to convey emotional messages to viewers, shed light on social problems, and reveal the stark contrasts between the “haves” and “have nots” in our society.  For example, in 1890 Jacob Riis’s How The Other Half Lives became a powerful record of the conditions in the slums of New York City.  In 1909, Lewis Hine’s sensitive portraits of children working in dangerous factories helped the enactment of child labor laws.

The Great Depression brought us works by Dorothea Lange, Arthur Rothstein, Walker Evans, Ben Shahn, Marion Post Wolcott and others.  The images captured by these photographers are a pictorial record that can help us make connections between the statistics of economic decline and the impact of hard times on real people’s lives.

The pictures of misery and despair during that era are arresting.

Gaunt, hollowed-faced hungry men and women gaze into lenses from windowless shacks and shabby tents.  Unemployed men in urban cities crowd office buildings to vie for scarce jobs.  There are the squatter camps, “Hoovervilles” or shanty towns built by the homeless.  Crop failure and dust storms decimate the Great Plains from North Dakota to Texas, from the Mississippi River Valley to the Rockies.  There are the migrant workers – pea pickers and sharecroppers – with their hungry half-naked children in tow roaming the countryside.  And perhaps most emblematic, are the snapshots of long lines of people winding around buildings, waiting to be fed soup and bread in the absence of substantial government relief programs.

As a student of American history, I have pored over the most enduring historical images, particularly those that document black America’s tough times – plantation life, segregation, lynching, riots, and the struggles of the Civil Rights Movement.  Now, for the first time, I’m moving beyond the musty archives, textbooks, scholarly articles, and media statistics to develop a visual understanding of the economic woes facing black Americans during this current recession.

For the past few weeks I’ve noticed an increasing number of lines winding around churches, community centers, Salvation Armies and family centers in Brooklyn that provide free food.  Each day, except Sunday, people line up as early as 8.00 am with colorful carts, heavy duty garbage bags, empty purses, and gym bags to get first dibs on fresh fruits, vegetables, bread, a ration of frozen chicken or turkey (the pantries never get red meat), powdered milk, baby formula and even dog food.

Since the United States officially entered into a recession in December 2007, 1.9 million jobs in New York City have been lost.  In the midst of job losses and rising food costs, the number of New Yorkers having difficulty affording food has spiked to four million in 2008, doubling from two million in 2003, and up from 3.1 million in 2007, a 26% increase.

Of the 1,000 emergency food organizations serving New Yorkers across the city’s five boroughs, there are 193 food pantries in Brooklyn alone.  A 2008 hunger report by the Food Bank for New York City reveals that 46% of New Yorkers needed food assistance for the first time – 33% in Queens, 31% in Brooklyn, 18% in the Bronx, 11% in Manhattan and 6% in Staten Island.  Coordinators and volunteers at soup kitchens and food pantries throughout the five boroughs warn of rising costs and lack of food while food demand increases in line with rising unemployment, particularly of black and Latino residents who suffer more in economic downturns.  The Food Bank hunger report also indicates that 60% of Latinos and 55% of black New Yorkers have difficulty affording food.

To provide a tiny glimpse into the hunger experience in New York City, I picked up a camera and visited some food pantries in Brooklyn.  I talked with those experiencing hard times, and the men and women lifting a helping hand.  Now, I’m no Ansel Adams or Gordon Parks behind the camera.  I have absolutely no training in photography and my photos are amateur at best.  Still, I hope these few pictures provide some sense of these anxious and precarious times as well as the good will of those who serve brothers and sisters in need.

The Long Wait

Every Thursday afternoon hundreds of people line up with carts and bags outside the St. Phillip’s Christian Church on Lafayette Avenue in Brooklyn. Staff and volunteers say that in recent weeks the lines have swelled to 300 to 400 people.

Number 9

A woman who did not want to be identified by face or name holds up her number instead. She is ninth out of 135 others waiting in line for rations of food. “You have to get here early,” she said. “They run out of the good stuff like fruit, bread, and juice. And some times they have sweet things like pastries and jelly.”

“We Don’t Turn Anybody Away.”

Thirty minutes before opening the door leading to the back of the St. Philip’s Christian Church, the line has already grown to nearly 100 people. Those who show up for food are generally required to bring a valid form of identification but if they don’t have one, they will not be turned away.

“No Shame.”

Danayah, 18, is escorted by a volunteer as she selects food inside the pantry hosted by the Child Development Support Corporation on Classon Avenue. “A lot of people don’t think that a young person would be coming to a food pantry,” she said. “But there’s no shame in getting a little help. I can’t turn that down.”

Helping Others in Need

Pantry coordinator Mireille Massac educates volunteer Teddy Chan about the selection of fresh organic vegetables to be distributed. Chan, a sophomore at Stoney Brook College, uses his spare time to help others in need during the recession. “Lifting a hand gives me a different perspective,” he said.

A Passion for Food Justice

Hanna Abbott (center) teaches two men how to cook Asian eggplants, red beets and Savoy cabbage − organic vegetables donated by a local farm. Abbott, a native of London, England, has worked on food policy issues for years in Europe. She is currently not able to work in the U.S. because she does not have a work visa. Instead, she volunteers all over New York City in soup kitchens and pantries. “Most people take for granted that we can go to the grocery store and choose what we want to eat,” she said. “Not everybody has that kind of access.”

Bread of Life

Joe Baldo, a volunteer at the Child Development Support Corporation’s food pantry, separates boxes and bags of pastries donated by a Russian bakery in Brooklyn. “Lately, we haven’t been getting as much bread so we can only give people three or four pieces at a time,” he noted. “We’ve got to stretch it out.”

“4 Potatoes, 1 Head of Cabbage or Beets and 4 Potatoes.”

Mireille Massac breaks down the rations for volunteers who will distribute vegetables. “Nothing goes to waste here,” she insisted. “Nothing.”

Canned Food

Stacks of canned pork, chicken, pink salmon, yams and spinach lined up in a narrow hallway inside the St. Philip’s pantry.

Next in Line

Mireille Massac transfers powdered milk from a basket into a cargo bags. “Please remember to bring your recyclable bags. Plastic bags are bad for the environment,” she lectured.

Faces of Hunger

They are black, white, Latino, young and old who line up outside pantries each day. Some have recently lost jobs. Others are on food stamps and visit pantries as a supplement.

Signing In

As people sign in they are given a card that indicates how much food they are eligible to receive. Information on food stamps, HIV/AIDS, food nutrition and other kinds of written materials are provided.

Waiting their Turn

On rainy days, the young and old crowd inside two waiting rooms inside the Child Development center on Classon Avenue.

Faces in the Crowd

Ten minutes after the door to the St. Philip’s Christian Church food pantry opens, the line begins to spill over into the street.

Going Home

An 11-year-old boy named Quan pushes a red cart with a large luggage bag full of food inside. He was number 23 in line at the St. Philip’s pantry. He heads back to his elderly grandmother’s house.

A Few Facts about Hunger in New York City

• In 2008, 1.3 million New York City residents relied on emergency food organizations.
• Approximately 4 million New York City residents (48%) had difficulty affording food in 2008, up 3.1 million in 2007.
• Almost 1 out 4 New York City residents would not be able to afford food for themselves and their family after the loss of their household income.
• 3.5 million New Yorkers are concerned about the possibility of needing food assistance within the next year.
• In 2008, 47% of New York City seniors age 65 and older experienced difficulty affording food.
• Approximately one-half of New Yorkers ages 50-64 are concerned that they may have to turn to food assistance within the next year.
• In 2008, 56% of New York City households with children had difficulty affording food.

Read more information on how to volunteer or to give donations to your local food pantry or soup kitchen.

Stacey Patton is a Senior Writer and Editor for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.