% america is fighting a losing battle on its own turf. the war on poverty. in california alone, nearly 5 million people are considered poor. >> to me, this is not just a sos logical analysis that i do. it's an outrage. the fallout of poverty levels on the rise, while resources are being cut, straight ahead on equal time. from san jose state university and kteh, you're watching equal time, exploring new issues each week, getting equal time to competing points of view. welcome to this edition of

equal time. i'm your host, journalism professor bob rucker. here in silicon valley and throughout california, people falling below the poverty line are likely to be those who once had a full-time job, but are now struggling to survive. the demand for government aid is great, but as mary ann reports, the money is simply not there. >> reporter: for more than 30 years, the family kitchen has opened its doors to people in poverty. from children to seniors, everyone is welcome. peter clark goes to loaves and fishes every day. >> i've been existing on food stamps since june of last year. that's it, no money. you know, it's a living. >> reporter: hope and mission is to never turn anyone away. loaves and fishes has three locations spread across san jose, where volunteers prepare and serve about 500 hearty meals each day. much of the food comes from the

food bank of santa clara county, which serves nearly 400,000 people a year. but for nonprofit organizations, the economic times are difficult. the city has cut $50,000 a year it was giving to fishes, plus county funding for the kitchen is down by 40%. this isn't the only agency starving for money. this year alone, three pantries and one homeless shelter have closed down in santa clara county. loaves and fishes volunteer manager mia white is worried about the survival of the kitchen and the people it serves. >> we are hopeful we can still provide our services, but without us, we have a lot of families that say they wouldn't have dinner. and for some of the folks that come in, this is the only meal they have all day. >> reporter: peter clark, once in the music industry, was diagnosed with shingles five years ago. >> being in this position is totally unbelievable to me. >> reporter: after a year in bed and with nearly enough money for medical bills, clark tried to get back on his feet. a couple months later, he

suffered a heart attack. clark wasn't able to do any strenuous activities. and without money and a job, he went into depression. but this agency is giving him hope. >> this place has helped me out to no end. it's gotten me through to the point where i'll have money coming in within a month and a half. >> reporter: without organizations like loaves and efficiency, many won't know where to turn. >> we have guests tell us before i knew about you, i was going through garbage cans and dumpsters looking for food and it's really unfortunate. i wouldn't want to have to live that way. >> reporter: more than half of the clients of the food bank in 2010 reported having to choose from paying for food and paying for utilities, while a third had to choose between food or medical care. >> we have a problem where i -- [ indescernible ] >> reporter: joanne ryan kerr

met clark at loaves and fishes. she says this free meal helps her save money for medicine and she worries about it closing. >> i would have to go back to the way i was living before -- [ indescernible ] >> reporter: medical problems also plague kevin peter. he became clinically depressed when he to find a new job after quitting to take care of his parents. >> i got frustrated. i had never had a time where i didn't work. i always had jobs. i always could get something. and i wasn't, you know, i was applying for mcdonald's jobs. i don't -- i hired and fired people. now i would do anything. you're too old, you're too experienced. >> reporter: people is dealing with his mental depression at the shelter where he stays. >> it's been about 60 days on the street, was eating lunch over at the salvation army and

the director there saw me and -- i mean, i looked and smelled just like every other homeless person by this point. but he, he is experienced and he saw that i didn't -- i wasn't going to last too long. >> reporter: it's stories like peter's, ryan kerrs, and clark's that encouraged sociologists to delve into the problem of poverty. associate professor of sociology at sju studies community change. >> to me, this is not just a sociological analysis that i do. to me, it's a moral outrage in that we have 19% of all u.s. children living in poverty, and i think it's important to see that in the richest country in the world. >> reporter: rich country, rich silicon valley, but a poor system to deal with poverty. >> when the banks, wealthiest people needed money, we gave the wealthiest banks over $3

trillion in matters of weeks that was given. but when the poorest americans and the low income americans, and when average americans need help, where is the bailout for them? when we come back, we'll show you what nonprofit organizations are doing to help those in need. >> it's a solvable problem. we'll look at those battling the war on poverty, and the people who have found their way because of them, when equal time returns. 

% the poverty level in santa clara county is higher than what you might expect for a wealthy area. we continue our look at what people are doing to attack poverty. here again is mary ann mendoza. >> reporter: cutbacks are ripping the hearts out of nonprofit organizations. the silicon valley council of nonprofit, representing dozens of community service groups, gathered this spring at the board of supervisors, children, families and seniors meeting, ripping paper hearts they brought each time a representative spoke about the government withdrawing its funding. >> we hear the heart breaking. >> reporter: in order to survive, groups that get government money are having to rely on more private donations

than ever before. agencies such assay credit heart community services in downtown san jose, which also gets money from faith-based organizations and individual donations. the agency offers food, customers can leave with a grocery big containing everything from eggs so vegetables to canned goods. sacred heart provides clothes, where clients can get anything from socks to dresses. and the nonprofit also helps people get jobs by providing a career center with computers and employment opportunities posted up on the wall. >> you know, poverty is a solvable problem. >> reporter: just scott wagers offers another resource for the poor, helping people for more than 20 years. >> god bless you, god bless you. >> as a society, what are our priorities? we have money for war. we have money for everything, it seems, especially when the dot-com boom was at its height,

had money for everything except for the homeless. >> reporter: wages says the government has to do more to help the poor. >> there's a lot of people that can't, they can't do anything anymore. they have been homeless so long, that they can't take care of themselves. if the government doesn't do it, they are going to die and the blood's on all of our hands. >> the damage is pretty cosmetic. >> reporter: miguel has come up with creative solutions to help the poor. >> believe it or not, i went to the association and they say what, you want to -- just like that? >> reporter: it isn't just like that. his efforts to donate cars to needy families is complicated. he owns a collision repair shop in san jose and each year he buys an insurance loss car, then repairs the damage. once he knows it's in good condition, he gives the car away. >> it has to be a need. why do they need this vehicle? most of the families, they don't -- they cannot get from point a to point b. >> reporter: he locates low

income families through nonprofit groups. through san jose's third street community center, he was introduced to sylvia murcato, a single mother who was struggling to stay afloat. >> then when i met with miguel and he said, oh, this is your car. and i said, my car? he says, yeah, you win the car. i said what? >> reporter: she and her 9-year- old daughter, samantha spent the nights on friend's couches, shelters, even on the streets. she is now in a welfare to work program that requires her to have a job, go to school, and perform community service. and although the car has been beneficial for the family, they still are struggling. >> my daughter says, oh, mama, we have a car. then i say, yeah, but we don't have a house, we don't have a place to live. >> reporter: while transportation is an important piece of survival, work is

another. 28% of all u.s. households have at least one member that is looking for a full-time job. the director of the day workers center of mountain have you helps connect workers with employers and empower workers with job skill training and education. the team knows how difficult it is for many to find jobs. >> i'm a day laborer, former day laborer myself when i started working at the center, was looking for a job to support my family. it was really difficult to be on the street waiting for employment. >> reporter: marcos, who struggles with hard times, has found work through the day workers center. >> by this time, many people are waiting for a job. >> reporter: he used to be hired on the street before he found the day worker center. >> sometimes out on the street,

it's there, but it's not assured they are going to pay. >> reporter: people like this man, who have taken it upon themselves to address the complex problem of poverty are helping in isolated areas, but is there a long-term solution? or is the war on poverty a lost cause? when we come back, we'll sit down with a panel of experts in search of solutions. stay with us. 

% welcome back to this edition of equal time, where our focus today is on poverty. and we have some very distinguished guests to share with us. >> i'm earl banks, one of the community involvement coordinators at sacred heart community service. my focus is on safe communities, on colleges and the universities. >> i'm colleen huges, executive director of services. >> my name is mary quintin, the stewardship elder for the community homeless alliance ministry. >> i'm january bernstein, volunteer with the gill roy task force and director of public enforcement. thank you all for being here today. let's get into this. when i looked at what the students at san jose state did in researching this, i was appalled. as a child of the war on poverty in the '60s, i thought

we were supposed to get past this. what happened? >> i think government has failed us. i think that the funding that government, the government has put into the war on poverty has never been enough, and i think that the, the churches and individuals that have saw this as a need in their community have tried to make the difference, but the need is just growing to a point where something else needs to be done, and until there's an outcry by the citizenry to let government know more needs to be done, it's not going to change. and i'm just appalled that the government is not doing more. having said that, many people think the government needs to be doing more, but are they the only ones in our society that should be doing more? >> in actuality right now, bob, the government has failed its people. i think, and i am going to be really radical when i say this, that they have allowed themselves to be influenced by

corporations. it is part of our constitution for us to take care of our people, and they actually -- it's -- they are making it illegal for people to be poor and homeless right now. it's a shame to think about. >> it is. >> while i agree with that, i just want to add, though, that one piece i think has been missing, and it probably started back in the last war on poverty, is as we've moved away from each other, especially moved away from the heart of the city, i think we've forgotten our responsibility, not just as humans, but as communities. the days of going down the street and getting left-over bread from the bakery on the corner, those days are over. part of what we try to do is take in our community service, is raise up a community united to share every child and adult in poverty, and community united piece is just as important as government's intervention, government programs,. >> very good, but i think we need to humanize this. do you believe that? >> well, one thing i want to say about it is that society

has come to a place where there are two distinct fears, and it's possible for a lot of people to live in a bubble and never see what the other people are going through. >> exactly. >> you know, we talk about government. it's not them. it's us. it's us. the people who have been entrusted and elected are doing what they think the voters want. and the message they have been receiving is no more taxes, stop paying for those people. >> and let somebody else take care of them. >> and as long as we have this belief that there's an us and there's a them and that we're not all part of the community together and not responsible for each other, this only gets worse. it only gets worse. >> and while we're doing all of this talking and thinking like that, the poverty issue is getting worse and worse and worse. >> absolutely. can you share more about how bad it's getting out there? >> actually, yes, i can. in 2009, there were 7000 homeless people in santa clara county. we don't have current numbers.

in 2009, 66 people perished because of neglect in poverty. i see that there is advocates for what they call a 10-year plan. you know, you don't have to be an accountant, which i am, to realize that in 10 years, hundreds and hundreds of people could die between the time they actually get the care that they need and the attention that they need. you would -- there are people that say that funding is being cut back. and yes, it has been cut back, but there's money out there. i want to get back to that. >> okay. i do think we need to talk to corporate americans and do more than just to say we sympathize. but colleen, you deal with adult situations. tell me more about what they are struggling with. >> i'm dealing with frail seniors who are 85, 90, some of them 100 years old, seniors that are in need of critical medical care. their families have made the very humane decision to keep them at home.

and this problem is only going to escalate. so these are seniors and the caregivers need to be supported, where they are supported and taken care of from 9:00 to 3:00, but the family member works or if they have to take off work or quit work, they are saving the government money. because what are they not doing? not putting mom or dad in a nursing home which costs tens of thousands of dollars a year. and so i think that that needs to be acknowledged and that needs to be put forth as a priority. so as we are sitting here today, we're getting letters that the funding from the federal, the state, the county, and the cities are being cut back because seniors are not seen as a priority. we are getting involved in situations where we know that the funding is going to go away. and so an agency like mine that has been there for 30 years will become extinct because the funding is not there. we have local donors and supporters that are taking care

of us, but it's not enough. we have churches that support us, but it's not enough. and you've got the religious community heavily involved in this and we're grateful that they are, but can they do it all? >> no, absolutely not. and we have made significant strides with companies. lot of companies like ciscoe, they actually are giving their employees incentives to come out and volunteer in different groups, come out and take the expertise to different agencies. but how do you tap into that? how do you spread the word for all the agencies to know that's available? people can contact these companies, if they are watching this program and say i just heard this and i think they are doing a great job. if you can get a buzz started like that, i think you will get interest started. >> just to give you an example of one story of how government and senior programs in the community can actually intertwine, build synergy, as you know, one of the things on the chopping block are the

senior seniors throughout santa clara county. we actually mobilized through policy advocacy organizing department, mobilized community leaders, people actually in the community that said, no, some of them were the seniors that said, no, we do not want our senior center to close. both of the seniors that go there, that meal they get there for lunch is the only meal some of them get a day. some of them actually take their lunch, split it in half, eat half the lunch, take the other half home for dinner, right? but as we train community lead stories speak their voice of power, we found last year that the government officials heard it and decided not to close, i think three out of five. so this year they are on the chopping block again. and the point needs to be made, we're talking about human beings. many of us hope to live longer, hope to have healthy futures, but many of us don't have the where with all to survive in this world. the personal stories, jan, if i

may ask, can you put a human face on this situation? >> you know, the human face i would put on it, and this is especially regarding homelessness, that's a point in time, and you can't tell where that person's been, can't tell where they are going, can't tell what they will do with some opportunities. just recently, i publicly shared that i had an episode of homelessness. i was homeless in the early '90s. i had made a very ill considered career move at the beginning of a recession, and i had an apartment and i was renting ab art studio as an artist and couldn't afford both at one point. the art studio was $150 a month and i was working for about $300 a month in an art gallery, so the apartment went and i took my dog and wound up sleeping, you know, in a warehouse and being very cut off from normal life. and it's hard to get back out of that without help. you're an educated person, did all the right things that

we're taught to do. it happened to you. >> and i might not have done all the right things, but i would like to hear from the person who has. [ laughter ] it's a challenge for everybody. >> but, you know, the thing is, the people who stay homeless for a long time and the difference between them and me is it was not me. it was the people around me that i got help from other people. there was somebody an employer is willing to take a chance on me, despite the fact i had a gap in my resume and i got help renting an apartment when it was time to find one, and that's not easy to do. once you're out of the game, it is very hard to get back in, and you can't do it without help. and my goal is to make sure that we are caring for each other. you know, for adult services, yes, families can care for somebody who is ill, who is disabled, who is elderly, then

that person is not homeless. but for people who can't support themselves or who are disabled, a lot of them do wind up on the street, if there isn't a family member or friend who can and will step in and care for them. and i would like to believe that the people watching this and the people in our community, if they only had time to look at this, they would help, they would step up, they would contribute in some way. am i wrong? >> no, that's absolutely correct. there is a lot of myths when it comes to homelessness. there are profiling that is done, used to be thought that only people with addiction or mental health problems became homeless. but the fact of the matter is, people lose their homes and become homeless every day, because of medical bankruptcy, misfortune at work, layoffs, whatever it is. it is -- we need to have an understanding of everybody and everybody's needs, and not clump them all together and not

profile them. she's absolutely right. you know, you need to help your friends. you need -- it's everybody's problem. >> you know, in the course of my lifetime, i've seen engineers who have become homeless and impoverished, people in journalism, broadcast, whatever. people in all walks of life. how do we get the word out, colleen that, it could happen to you? >> i you know, what i tried to do in every conversation, and this is one of those opportunities, i want to let everybody know that we all have mothers and fathers, and we are all getting older. and so it's not that we are an island that we can ignore this. we are either going to be a caregiver or we're going to need care. >> yeah. >> and so to get an opportunity to go to a corporation and to share with employees at a brown bag luncheon that this problem is just like child care, people can't go to work if they don't have child care. if they don't have elder care, if they don't have a place to live, there are barriers. so we have to work together to

make sure that we understand that most people, when they are in a crisis, it's not just one thing, not just food or shelter, but it's the healthcare, maybe drug addiction involved. so when i am out there, i love it when i get called in to a corporation, because i can share from the cradle to grave, there are issues that are affecting their employees. and if your employee is involved and all-consumed with these type issues, they are not doing 100% at work either. so it is your problem, whether you accept it or not. >> part of the culture. >> you are part of the culture. community. 401(k)s are wonderful, but maybe we need to talk about after 401(k). >> how to make sure you keep those and get to retirement! it's a community problem that, it's like older seniors, they have lived, they are worked, they are okay. let's focus on the kids. you can't do that, because these are families. let's talk about kids. children falling into poverty,

serious problem. faith-based organizations are trying to do something. >> yes, absolutely. and a big part, big part of what they are doing is volunteering. at sacred heart, i can't put a number on it compared to that, but the number of volunteers from the faith community is tremendous. we would not be able to stay and do the great work that we do, provide the services we do, if it wasn't for the faith community. some of those -- there's a lot of retired people, but also with the, with the schools. there are a lot of parochial schools, independent schools, christian schools that -- religious schools that volunteers come from. and that's a huge piece of it. when we give volunteers opportunities to put their hands and their feet and their words into action, one of the things colleen does is the birthday parties -- yeah, birthday parties, where you get to dance with the seniors. one of the things we do is emersion programs. we get to be homeless for a day, where you'll, you know,

get to go out and have conversations, interview people on the street. >> be creative. >> right. >> innovative. >> yes. there's a community called st. julies that has a service that they provide food for young people, as well as for older people. as we continue and we are trying to understand what's my role, what can i do, what would you say? >> well, there are a lot of things you can do. you know, you can take a political role, you can let your representatives know that you think this is important. if you work for a company, you can get involved. lot of corporations have giving councils, they have people, they need committees for volunteer days. or just raise the question. >> raise the question. if you are with a church, you can do-- >> volunteer work. >> volunteer work. i'm going to have to say our time is done. you guys keep going, keep at it. people need this. thank you for joining us and come back for another edition of equal time.