Re-Examining Hunger Through the Lens of Social Justice

We know that fighting hunger requires much more than just providing food. Eliminating hunger requires addressing its root causes in poverty and social disparities. Poverty and hunger are experienced at disproportionately higher rates for people of color, women, LGBTQ communities, immigrants, and other marginalized groups. The reasons for the disparate impact of poverty are often rooted in structural barriers created by discriminatory laws, racist policies, and prejudicial societal practices—resulting in generations of lost opportunities for education, employment, healthcare, and housing. To make the greatest impact on hunger, we must tackle the structural barriers that adversely target these communities and work towards ending each practice that widens opportunity gaps—while reinforcing those that create opportunities that lead to a more equitable society.

In addition to providing nutritious food to those who suffer from hunger, Northwest Harvest aims to shift public opinion and impact institutional policies and societal practices that perpetuate hunger, poverty, and disparities in our state. We will step up and step forward to stand in solidarity with those who struggle with hunger in Washington. And we cannot do this work without affirming our commitment to equity and inclusion. Equity issues are at the core of our agency values of service with dignity and respecting diversity. To carry out our work of serving anyone in need of our assistance, we will ensure that our policies, procedures, and interactions with others are done through an equity lens—with dignity and respect for all.