PRESS RELEASE: Oregon Food Bank Statement on Anti-hunger Ballot Victories

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, November 11, 2022

Contact: Frankie Fernandez-Breedlove, frankie@brinkcomm.com, 805-312-1672

CEO Susannah Morgan: “Our communities showed up to support the kind of policy changes that address hunger at its roots.”

PORTLAND, OR – Oregon Food Bank CEO Susannah Morgan released the following statement on anti-hunger victories in the 2022 midterm election results:

This election was a critical moment for voters to address hunger and its root causes at the ballot box. Our communities are reeling from ongoing pandemic impacts and the rising cost of food and housing. We expect as many as 1.5 million visits to emergency food assistance sites this year — nearly double pre-pandemic levels. And while connecting people to free, nutritious food is essential in the short-term, we know that food assistance alone will never be enough to end hunger for good. Systemic challenges like hunger and poverty require systemic solutions, and our communities showed up to support the kind of policy changes that address hunger at its roots.

Oregonians have shown tremendous support for ballot measures endorsed by our Policy Leadership Council to advance racial equity, make government more responsive and promote a thriving democracy – all victories that will help our communities end hunger for good. We look forward to working with our new governor and legislators to build on these gains and move toward a future where our communities never know hunger.

On Oregon Measure 111

Thanks to voters who passed Measure 111, affordable healthcare is now a right in Oregon. No one should have to choose between food and medicine — and a lack of nutritious food can seriously harm our health. This measure is an important step forward to ensure we all have access to affordable care — no matter where we were born, how much money we make or the color of our skin.

On Oregon Measure 112

Today we’re celebrating that Oregonians strongly affirmed that slavery and other types of involuntary servitude have no place in our laws. Systemic racism and exclusion has played a major role in creating hunger and poverty in every corner of our state — and passing Measure 112 is an essential, long overdue step for Oregon to move closer to a society rooted in liberation and equity.

On Multnomah County Charter Changes

The experts on solutions to hunger are people who have experienced it. A healthy, well-functioning democracy is key to ensuring our elected officials hear and implement the priorities of communities with lived experience and expertise. With these changes to the Multnomah County Charter, voters have ensured that local government will be more responsive, accountable and transparent.

On Portland City Charter Reform

Voters have embraced community-led changes to the Portland City Charter that will ensure more effective city services and greater choice in who represents us on key issues. With a more responsive and accountable local government in place, we are all better positioned to tackle hunger and its root causes in our community.

Oregon Food Bank CEO Susannah Morgan is available for interviews to share further insights on the connection between the election results and the state of hunger. Contact frankie@brinkcomm.com or 805-312-1672 to coordinate interviews.

- ### -

ABOUT OREGON FOOD BANK

At Oregon Food Bank, we believe that food and health are basic human rights for all. We know that hunger is not just an individual experience; it is also a community-wide symptom of barriers to employment, education, housing and health care. That’s why we work systemically in our mission to end hunger in Oregon: we foster community connections to help people access nutritious, affordable food today, and we build community power to eliminate the root causes of hunger for good. Visit OregonFoodFinder.org to find resources in your community.