The heartwrenching prospect of the termination of SNAP benefits hits me very hard.
It reminds me of the days when I struggled to survive after I was declared disabled when I was unable to get housing assistance and lived on the edge of homelessness for two years before finally getting evicted from my apartment.
My SNAP benefits literally enabled me to survive. Given the horrific stress that I was under regarding keeping a roof over my head, if there had been even any possible circumstances for me to contemplate the termination or interruption of my SNAP benefits, the stress alone would have made me sick enough to wind up in the emergency room, even though I had no preexisting psychiatric history.
My heart breaks for what people are going through now. If the benefits are interrupted, many people will become ill. Even without actual interruption, the psychological trauma of contemplation of the possibility of interruption could last for years, and impact multiple generations. Children will never forget for the rest of their lives if they and/or their parents have to go without even one meal.
The damage of this cruelty is unspeakably irreparable.
And while the people of this country are facing such inexcusable hardship, the president of this country is busy demolishing part of the White House in order to build his glorious ballroom. This is where his mentality is. How can this even be happening? What will it take for it to stop? Do we need another pandemic to come along and kill millions of people for us to finally appreciate the value of human life?
And where is the Supreme Court while all this is going on? Do we hear their voices defending the lives of innocent suffering people? What will it take to get this president removed from office before the country is completely in shambles and the hearts and souls of everyone in it are completely destroyed?.
On Oct. 21, 2025, U.S. Rep. John Larson of Connecticut‘s First District, introduced a bill to pay federal workers and block members of Congress and Trump officials from taking checks during the shutdown.
The bill is titled, ”the MAGA Act”, with ”MAGA ” meaning ”make America govern again.” This brilliant title essentially sums up our entire situation. And unless Congress and the Supreme Court start doing their jobs, there is not going to be a country left.
Lisa P. Rimland lives in Glastonbury.