EBT/Food Stamps: The Horrible Stigma That Families Face

Now I know most people just read that title and are complaining that people on food stamps are lazy, milking the system, steal money from my pocket, etc but I'm here to tell you that not everyone is like that.

Let me start by saying that when I was growing up, my dad had a great job at a warehouse and he had seniority so he made a pretty good penny so that my mom could stay at home with me and my siblings. Then the layoffs started and unfortunately, my father was not spared. He would get layed off for six months at a time and then once work would pick up, he would have his job back. Between his unemployment and my mom getting jobs at gas stations or hot dog stands, we still were coming up short so we had to go on food stamps. Once my dad knew he had his job back, my mom would let the government know and we were off of them.

Fast forward about 20+ years and I have found myself jobless and a single mom so I went and applied for food stamps. I am not embarrassed and I shouldn't be. I have worked since I was about 10 years old, with a newspaper route, to help my family and then when I was 15, I got my first real job. I have always worked and paid taxes so the way I see it, I am not taking anything out of anyone's pocket. I have paid my fair share of taxes especially the few years where I was working two jobs and was a full time student.

Now I'm not blind because I have seen first hand that there are some people out there that is taking advantage of the system but to sit there and say that everyone does, is being very judgemental. Another thing that bothers me is the comments when I'm in the store. Just because I have steak or a cake does not mean I am taking advantage of the system. I manage to make my food stamps last the whole month and even roll into the next month.

I am not a bad person for wanting a certain type of food so the next time you want to comment about someone on food stamps, please stop and think. What if you lost your job and you couldn't find work right away? What if you had to go on government aid, would you like someone judging you?

Everyone can fall into hard times and sometimes you find yourself on government aid but that doesn't make you a bad person. I know that I do not want to live on food stamps forever. I want to work and I am doing everything possible to change my current situation but change does not happen overnight. Things take time so yes for the time being: I am on government aid, no I am not ashamed about it, and no I am not abusing it. I'm just a single mom trying to get her life back on track and doing the best I can for my daughter and myself.

The next time you are in the store and you see someone pay with food stamps, instead of jumping to conclusions please try this instead: take a breath, look past the person's outside appearance, think about what they could be going through, and give them a break instead of the whispers and comments. Some of us have been through hell and we are barely hanging on so try not to judge just because some people have done wrong on government aid. Not all of us on food stamps are bad people, we are just trying to change a bad situation.