New Mexico Appleseed's advocacy for universal free school meals gained national attention, including a feature on John Oliver's Last Week Tonight. Their work highlights the critical need to end lunch shaming and ensure every child has access to nutritious meals, reinforcing their commitment to equity in education.
Read MoreAs New Mexico lawmakers look for ways to trim the state's budget, there's a proposal to scale back programs that are aimed at feeding kids in the state. The proposal is not sitting well with child advocates. "This is more urgent than people realize," said Jennifer Ramo, executive director of New Mexico Appleseed. "This is a terrifying, humanitarian disaster that we're watching for children."
Read MoreThere are new efforts to help with growing problems for New Mexico children. An organization is holding events to increase access to food and health care—two issues that the pandemic has made worse. Many groups are working overtime to help, including food banks, local schools, and the federal and state government, but the organization New Mexico Appleseed, which combats poverty, wants to do more.
Read MoreHere's an issue Republicans and Democrats agree on: Ending the "barbaric" practice of school lunch shaming.
Read MoreState Senator Michael Padilla (D-NM) joins Greta Van Susteren to discuss his battle against the humiliating practice sweeping cafeterias across the nation.
Read MoreNew Mexico has become the first state in the U.S. to ban “lunch shaming.” The new law prevents schools from singling out students whose school cafeteria bills haven’t been paid.
Read MoreThe first of its kind legislation in the U.S. outlaws “lunchtime shaming” -- when children are denied food for overdue bills that their parents have not paid.
Read More"School lunch is no longer this Brady Bunch convenience; it is a soup kitchen," said Jennifer Ramo, of the New Mexico anti-poverty group Appleseed.
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