“Saturday Night Live” star Michael Che is speaking out against the suspension of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which began Saturday following the now month-long government shutdown.
“This SNAP gel is really fucked up,” Che wrote in an Instagram post on Saturday. “And I keep seeing a lot of racist videos celebrating (mostly black) families who can’t buy groceries. There’s this weird idea that because some people have taken advantage of welfare in the neighborhood, NO ONE should get any help, at all? This country is built on greedy motherfuckers who take shortcuts and manipulate the system for their benefit, but for some reason when poor people find a way to turn a dime into a dime, they are judged more severely, especially black people.”
He continued: “I [know] the main thing is to hate each other here so we can fight in the comments and step up our commitments, but let’s draw the line at feeding the poor. I grew up with free cheese and powdered milk and waiting for your friends to leave the store so they wouldn’t see me paying with stamps. This shit ain’t as glamorous as it seems. I promise.
The government shut down Oct. 1 after Republicans and Democrats failed to pass a bill to fund government services as the previous federal budget expired. In the Senate, Republicans are 60 votes short of passing the proposed bill, giving Democrats a chance to fight back on key issues.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees SNAP, sent a memo Oct. 26 saying benefits would end Nov. 1. However, two federal judges in Massachusetts and Rhode Island both ruled Friday that the Trump administration, under law, is required to use reserve funds to pay at least a portion of SNAP benefits. The Trump administration has until Monday to respond to this decision.
