Tyler Perry is giving back amid the ongoing government shutdown.
As millions of Americans are set to lose their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, the 56-year-old filmmaker has donated nearly $1.4 million to organizations that support families most impacted.
Keep reading to find out more…“If you’ve never been poor then you may not fully understand the life changing impact SNAP benefits mean to hard-working people, to our seniors and to our children,” Tyler shared in a statement with People.
“For millions of people, it could mean extreme hunger,” he continued. “For newborns, it could mean a lack of access to formula.”
The organizations that Tyler donated to include Atlanta Community Food Bank, Baby2Baby, Meals on Wheels Atlanta, Caring for Others, All for Lunch, Ron Clark Academy, and Goodr.
The SNAP program “provides food benefits to low-income families to supplement their grocery budget so they can afford the nutritious food essential to health and well-being,” as The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) stated in an October 18 letter.
Approximately 42 million Americans could lose their SNAP benefits as the USDA projects that there will not be enough federal funding to cover the entire month of November.
In his statement, Tyler, who has previously spoken publicly about his childhood trauma and homelessness, went on to call the loss of vital food assistance programs “heartbreaking.”
“Compassion is not political, it’s humanity and we seem to be missing both right now,” he added.
As of Wednesday, November 5, the ongoing government shutdown, which began on October 1, became the longest shutdown in American history, surpassing the 35-day closure that took place during Donald Trump‘s first term.
