联邦救助帮助纽约负担不起食物的工薪阶层

联邦救助帮助纽约负担不起食物的工薪阶层

It is Christmas time at the South Bronx apartment of Jose and Oleyda Gutierrez.

在布朗克斯南部公寓中生活的约瑟和奥莱德娅·古特雷兹现在已经迎来了圣诞。

Their spirits are high, the food budget is low.

他们对这个节日热情很高，但食物预算却很低。

Jose is the sole income producer working at a restaurant employee for minimum wage plus minimal 1 tips.

在一家餐馆打工，赚取着最低工资及微薄小费的约瑟是家中唯一的收入来源。

“The money we make is not enough, we cannot afford to buy enough food because at the end of the month,sometimes even at the end of the week, Thursday or Friday, the refrigerator is almost empty or sometimes empty. We cannot afford to have meat or different things. We have basic things like beans, rice, milk, eggs. We want to have something else like a little treat. It is not possible.”

“我们赚的钱不多，负担不起足够多的食物。因为到了月底，有时甚至是到了周末，周四或周五时，冰箱就空空荡荡了。”我们负担不起肉或别的食物。我们只能买豆类，大米，牛奶，鸡蛋这些最基本的。我们也想买点别的东西改善生活，但这是不可能的。

The federal nutritional 2 “food stamp” assistance program helps poor family with some basics.

而联邦的营养“食品券”援助帮助到这些贫困家庭，为他们提供必需品。

With significance cuts pass will looming 3 federal budget and nutritious 4 diet may be a thing of past for the working poor.

随着财政支出的大幅削减，对于贫困的工薪阶层而言营养餐可能会成为过去式。

Philomena Acebedo is coordinator 5 for the New York City Coalition 6 Against Hunger,“Even though they are working, they still need food stamps because it is not enough. Whatever they earn, they have to pay their rent, and, whatever they have left, it is not enough to put on their table.”

纽约市反饥饿联盟协调员菲利奥纳·阿博德说道：“就算他们都在工作，还是需要食品券，因为挣得钱远不够家庭支出。不管他们怎么赚钱，都要付房租，而剩下的钱不够买吃的。”

In West Harlem, the poor and the hungry line up outside the Food Bank for New York City's community kitchen and food pantry.

而在西哈林区，穷人及饿着肚子的人群正在纽约的社区厨房和食物储备机构食物银行外排起了长队等等接受援助。

Margarette Purvis is president and CEO：“We serve families, and to be in the city, most of those families are going to have to work, and they do.

该机构主席兼CEO的马格雷特·普维斯说道:“我们为这些有困难的家庭送去爱心，而且纽约，这些家庭大多数都在找工作或是正在工作。

They work every day, they work hard for their living.

他们每天都去工作，努力工作养家糊口。

Unfortunately, they don't make enough to actually cover the rent and the food and the child care expenses.”

但不幸的是，他们赚的钱不足以支付房屋、伙食费用及抚养子女。

Across the city, Food Bank for New York City distributes 120 free meals every minute.

纽约城的食物银行每分钟免费发放120份食物。

Previous cuts to the federal nutrition program two years ago cost the city 5.3 meals a month.

而营养补充援助计划于2年前的开支削减使得这座城市每个月减少5.3份食物。

Many of those meals were targeted for working families.

大多数食物都分给了工薪阶级家庭。

Still, the White House says that in 2014, over 2 million children benefited from food stamps,impacting their lives well beyond their childhood years.

即使这样，白宫表示2014年食品券让200万儿童受益，影响了他们的生活，甚至超过整个童年时光。

The study cites 7 benefits for health, education and economic self-sufficiency.

这项研究表明这个项目对人民健康、教育及经济自给自足都大有益处。

In New York, the benefits have been available to 400,000 preschool-aged children.

就纽约市而言，这个项目正帮助40万名学前儿童。

Meantime, back in the Gutierrez apartment, Christmas is very much on the minds of the two children and of course on their parents.

同时在古特雷兹家中，圣诞节对于2个孩子还有他们的家长而言都是意义非凡。

The father reviews the children desires toy lists.

这位父亲看着孩子们希望得到的圣诞节玩具清单。

“Most of the Christmas they want, I know I cannot afford all of them，but I'm going to make sure they're going to have a Merry Christmas.”

“我不能满足他们的大多数圣诞愿望，但是我会保证他们过一个快乐的圣诞节。”

Jose says he will buy two youngest kids gifts as soon as he gets his next paycheck,but he is worried it would not be enough to many gifts or enough for holiday food.

约瑟表示他拿到下个月的薪水后会立刻给2个最小的孩子买圣诞礼物，他也担忧可能买不了很多礼物，而且圣诞大餐也不会太丰盛。”