DOCUMENT RESUME ED 416 173 SO 029 325 AUTHOR Cohen, Marc J., Ed. TITLE Causes of Hunger: Hunger 1995. Fifth Annual Report on the State of World Hunger. INSTITUTION Bread for the World Inst., Silver Spring, MD. ISBN ISBN-1-884361-50-1 PUB DATE 1994-00-00 NOTE 147p.; For companion "User's Guide" designed for group or individual study of "Causes of Hunger," see SO 029 326. Photographs may not reproduce well. AVAILABLE FROM Bread for the World Institute, 1100 Wayne Avenue, Suite 1000, Silver Spring, MD 20910, telephone: 301-608-2400 ($14.95 members, $17.95 non-members). PUB TYPE Reports Descriptive (141) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC06 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Adult Education; Age Discrimination; Environment; Ethnic Discrimination; Foreign Countries; Higher Education; *Hunger; Nutrition; Politics; *Poverty; Racial Discrimination; *Religion Studies; Secondary Education; Sex Discrimination; Social Bias; Violence; *World Affairs; *World Problems ABSTRACT This comprehensive report shows how hunger is interrelated with other social ills, including powerlessness, violence, poverty, environmental destruction, and discrimination. More than a billion people are too poor to afford an adequate diet and other essential of life such as health care, housing, sanitation, safe water, and education. In the United States, an estimated 30 million people cannot afford to buy enough food to maintain good health. The report shows how thousands of private organizations and millions of individuals are helping hungry people in the United States and worldwide. The report contains two essays for an overview of the problem of hunger and seven other essays on various aspects of the hunger problem. Essays include: (1) "Introduction: The Courage to Choose" (Richard A. Hoehn); (2) "Overview of World Hunger" (Peter Uvin; Marc J. Cohen; A Cecilia Snyder; Richard A. Hoehn; Maureen Harris); (3) "Cause 1: Powerlessness and Politics" (Marc J. Cohen); (4) "Cause 2: Violence and Militarism" (Daniel U.B.P. Chelliah; (5) "Cause 3: Poverty in a Global Economy" (Don Reeves); (6) "Cause 4: Population, Consumption, and Environment" (Nancy Wright; A. Cecilia Snyder; Don Reeves); (7) "Cause 5: Racism and Ethnocentrism" (International: Sarita Wardlaw Henry)(United States: Billy J. Tidwell); (8) "Cause 6: Gender Discrimination" (A. Cecilia Snyder); and (9)"Cause 7: Vulnerability and Age" (Children: Urban Jonsson)(Elderly People: Jashinta D'Costa). The appendix contains 6 tables, a list of abbreviations, a 46-item glossary, notes, and a bibliography. (EH) ******************************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. * ******************************************************************************** Sc Hunger 1995 Causes of Hunger .1" A (e. Et U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research end Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent 0 official OERI position or policy PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND 0 DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Fifth Annual Report on the State of World Hunker BEST COPY AVAI LE Hunger 1995 Causes of Hunger Fifth Annual Report on the State of World Hunger FOR THE WORLD r_Jr_u 100 WAYNE AVENUE STE. 1000 SILVER SPRING,MD 20910 USA *11Z Cover and text printed on recycled paper Bread for the World Institute President President Emeritus David Beckmann Arthur Simon Director Richard A. Hoehn Editor Marc J. Cohen Art Director Timothy Achor-Hoch ©1994 by Bread for the World Institute, 1100 Wayne Avenue, Suite 1000, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA Telephone: (301) 608-2400FAX: (301) 608-2401 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher except for brief passages quoted in a review. Printer: Communications Graphics, Baltimore, MD Cover photo: NASA Manufactured in the United States of America First edition published October 1994 ISBN 1-884361-50-1 4 iiCauses of Hunger Table of Contents Foreword Cause 5: Racism and Ethnocentrism by David Beckmann 1 International by Santa Ward law Henry 72 The United States by Billy J. Tidwell 79 Introduction: The Courage to Choose by Richard A. Hoehn 2 Cause 6: Gender Discrimination by A. Cecilia Snyder 85 Overview of World Hunger by Peter Uvin, Marc J. Cohen, Cause 7: Vulnerability and Age A. Cecilia Snyder, Richard A. Hoehn, Children by Urban Jonsson 94 and Maureen Harris 9 Elderly People by Jashinta D'Costa 100 Causes of Hunger Appendix Tables Cause 1: Powerlessness and Politics Global Demographic Indicators 105 by Marc J. Cohen 21 Global Health, Nutrition, and Welfare Statistics 109 Cause 2: Violence and Militarism Global Economic Indicators 113 by Daniel U.B.P. Chelliah 35 Poverty and Hunger Statistics Developing Countries 117 Cause 3: Poverty in a Global Economy United States Poverty Trends 120 by Don Reeves 47 United StatesState Poverty Conditions 120 Sources for Tables 122 Cause 4: Population, Consumption, and Abbreviations 123 Environment Glossary 124 by Nancy Wright, A. Cecilia Snyder, Notes and Bibliography 126 and Don Reeves 61 Sponsors and Cosponsors 135 Now Available: Causes of Hunger: A User's Guide For Christian Congregations An interactive, intergenerational guide to help organize group or flindividual study of Causes of Hunger. The guide includes activities, worship aids, Bible studies, and a resource listadapt- able for classes, weekend retreats, and evening meetings. Order from Bread for the World Institute. Cost: $5.00 plus postage and handling. To order, call (301) 608-2400 or FAX (301) 608-2401. BEST COPY AVAILANnger1995 iii Foreword CAUSES OF HUNGERshows how hunger is interrelated with other so- cial illspowerlessness, violence, poverty, environmental destruction, and discrimination. All these ills have roots in distorted values. Tackling hunger and related social problems starts with ethical choices. We have the means to end hunger. Eliminating widespread hunger in the United States is feasible and affordable. Changed U.S. policies could also givea huge boost to progress against world hunger. But we need to choose,as individuals and as a society. Our hunger report last year urged that some of the effort already devoted to helping hungry people be shifted toward transforming the politics of hunger. This year's report is a more fundamental call to choose what is good and right. Bread for the World Institute is associated with Bread for the World,a Christian citizens' movement against hunger. Bread for the World's members account for much of U.S. citizen action on behalf of poor and hungry people in other countries. We also make a difference on issues that are important to hungry people within the United States. A key to the effectiveness and persistence of this grassroots movement is its grounding in Christian moral teaching and faith. Guilt is not a good motivator. Those who do not grow weary in well doingare often nourished by an inner, spiritual feastfor Christians, joy in response to God's grace; for others, according to their own traditions. With only a mustard seed of faith great things are possible. We can end mass hunger, and that would be a giant step toward a more wholesome, sustainable society and world. President Bread for the World Institute 1 Causes of Hunger Introduction: The Courage to Choose by Richard A. Hoehn progress in recent years, we still lack sufficient political CAUSES OF HUNGER probes the most pro- will to take even obvious and relatively uncontroversial found moral and spiritual contradiction of our agethe actions that would reduce hunger. persistence of hunger in a world of plenty. This report shows how hunger is one piece of a com- Twenty percent of people in the developing world plex of interrelated social ills. Hungry people in the suffer chronic undernutrition. More than a billion peopleUnited States depend on food stamps, but many would are too poor to afford an adequate diet and other essen-not need food stamps if they had access to good jobs. tials of life such as health care, housing, sanitation, safe Hungry people in Sudan need food aid, but if they were water, and education. More than one-third of the people not living in a war zone, they would be able to plant in the world lack the vitamins and minerals they need toand harvest crops needed to survive. learn, work, and achieve full potential. Just as providing jobs or ending wars could reduce In the United States, an estimated 30 million people world hunger, progress in reducing hunger can lead to cannot afford to buy enough food to maintain good progress on other fronts. For example, less hunger and health. One of every five children lives in poverty and poverty would surely mean that social tensions that sometimes goes hungry. More than 10 percent of the often lead to violent conflicts would recede. population depends on food stamps for part of their diet. Thus, people who are moved to end hunger find Bread for the World, other public and private agen- themselves united with people who are working against cies, and thousands of committed individuals have war, communal violence, racism, poverty, human rights helped reduce world malnutrition rates over the past 20 abuses, gender discrimination, and despoliation of the years (see "Overview of World Hunger"). But massive planet. Ending hunger is part of a larger vision for soci- hunger persists in most parts of the world. There is still ety, a vision exemplified in this excerpt from the biblical a wide gap between humanity's professed moral values book of Isaiah: and our collective action. We have allowed hunger to For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth ... spread in some places, notably Africa, some countries J e r u s a l e m to be a d e l i g h t and her p e o pl e a joy .