This Thanksgiving comes amid an unprecedented rise in global hunger

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Our tables brim, others go hungry

The writer is a deacon for Raleigh’s Catholic diocese.

As Americans, we are about to enter the season of feasting. During Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other religious/national celebrations, most of our tables brim with food. For others, there will be hunger.

After more than a decade of decline, world hunger has skyrocketed at an unprecedented rate, with more than 800 million people each night going to bed hungry. The impacts of the war in Ukraine and lingering effects of the pandemic have pushed us to the precipice of a hunger catastrophe in countries like Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Yemen.

The number of those facing acute food insecurity worldwide has more than doubled since 2019 — from 135 million to 345 million.

What can we do? First, we must acknowledge that no family deserves to go to bed hungry. As a father and grandfather, I cannot imagine the heartache of not being able to feed my grandchild.

We must advocate for the highest funding levels possible for poverty-reducing international development and humanitarian assistance in 2023, and for the passage of the Global Food Security Reauthorization Act making its way through Congress. This bill would reaffirm the commitment of the United States to ending hunger and malnutrition globally.

And, we must look for ways to act locally because we don’t have to look far to find those in need of food, shelter and compassion, especially with inflation at historic highs. Supporting groups like the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina or Durham Community Food Pantry or Loaves & Fishes in Charlotte are good places to start.

As Americans, we have an embarrassment of riches. As we gather to feast, let’s make sure the needs of others are met.

Stephen Yates, Chapel Hill

Beasley lost and Dems are to blame

Our nation must reckon with a crucial political issue: We provide funding and coverage to scandalous campaigns instead of issue-driven politicians like Cheri Beasley.

I was inspired by Beasley’s character and ideas-driven campaign. She is a staunch supporter of the Democratic Party platform, including lowering the cost of living for the middle class, protecting Medicare and Medicaid, and codifying abortion rights. She has a stellar reputation for moderate decision-making — perfect for a battleground state like North Carolina. Yet, I struggled to find enthusiasm for her campaign outside my home state. Nationwide news coverage was dominated by Herschel Walker’s alleged infidelity, John Fetterman’s stroke, and 2020 election denier J. D. Vance’s bid for office.

Campaign funding reports confirmed my suspicions: While Beasley raised almost three times what Budd did, support from Republican superPACs and billionaire donors gave Budd a $31 million advertising advantage.

National campaign spending data also painted a clear picture: North Carolina was well within Democrats’ reach, but Beasley was clearly not a priority. Most of the national money was spent in Pennsylvania and Georgia.

As a candidate, Ted Budd came across as an affable, moderate character. He wasn’t in the headlines for scandals or offensive comments. Yet, he represents the Republican Party’s radical wing. As a Trump-endorsed candidate, Budd opposes abortion, increased access to healthcare, and expanded voting rights. He may lack the political pizzazz of other Trump-backed candidates, but his election moved America in the same staunchly-conservative direction.

Beasley’s lack of support from the Democratic Party represents an alarming trend — prioritization of the most entertaining campaigns among national news and political circles. Attention-grabbing headlines garner necessary clicks and profit for media organizations, but the prioritization of such clicks over the issues diminishes our cultural conversation as a whole.

Politicians such as Beasley, who run issue-driven campaigns, have little chance to enter the nation’s political zeitgeist. The Democratic Party’s failure to recognize this problem means they gave up the opportunity to gain a critical Senate seat in a time when every seat matters — and our nation is the worse for it.

Edward Rogers, Durham