Genaro Alfonzo arrived at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday morning wearing a Dodgers hat and jersey, his Boys in Blue flag flying from a Toyota pickup truck.
But the morning after his beloved Dodgers won Game 6 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays, Alfonso wasn’t happy. It was almost 11 a.m., and the 70-year-old man had not eaten yet.
“This is it,” he said, holding up a half-empty blue plastic coffee cup with tears streaming down his face. “I don’t have a job. My wife doesn’t have a job – no job. The market is expensive.”
Alfonzo was one of thousands who attended a drive-thru food distribution event hosted by the Los Angeles Area Food Bank on Saturday at the Kia Forum on the first day of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding cutoff.
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It’s the first day of the month and the first day the federal government has suspended food assistance to millions of low-income Americans, including 5.5 million Californians, due to the government shutdown that began on October 1.
on Friday, In separate rulings, two federal judgesordered the USDA to begin using more than $5 billion in emergency funding for SNAP during the government shutdown. But they gave the agency until Monday to figure out how to do that.
While these orders are a win for people who rely on SNAP, it doesn’t mean recipients will not be affected by food assistance. State and local food banks scrambled over the weekend to prepare for the influx of demand.
People pick up food distributed by the Noel Community Organization at Lily of the Valley Christian Church in Long Beach on Saturday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
California Attorney. Gen. Rob Bonta said Thursday that the ruling in favor of states does not mean SNAP funds will be immediately transferred to CalFresh and other benefit cards.
“Our best estimate is [SNAP benefit] Cards can be loaded and used in about a week,” he said, adding, “There’s probably about a week when people are hungry and need food. “Delays may be longer for new program applicants,” he said.
Under gray skies and heavy fog, dozens of volunteers from the Los Angeles Area Food Bank gathered outside the Forum on Saturday to serve Angelenos and stock their shelves and refrigerators in the face of what could become the longest shutdown since 2018, when the government shut down for 35 days.
According to the food bank, volunteers distributed food containers to about 5,000 cars. Each serving contains about 40 meals, including whole grains, fresh produce, tortillas, canned tuna, yogurt and frozen chicken.
“This is what large-scale disaster relief looks like,” said food bank CEO Michael Flood. “This is about getting as much information as possible to as many people as possible safely in a short amount of time.”
Fueled by snacks such as chips, oranges and bottled water, many volunteers expressed enthusiasm for the long day ahead.
“I’m happy to be here, it’s a great opportunity to help people,” Jordan Diaz, 35, said.
Ron Del Rio, 54, said he was happy to help but angry about the situation.
“It’s frustrating and heartbreaking to see people going hungry,” he said. “It’s really disturbing that it has to be this way. Why would 5,000 cars go through here in such a wealthy country?”
Norma White gave Dario Medina a free haircut as people waited to receive food distributed by the Noel Community Organization on Saturday at Lily of the Valley Christian Church in Long Beach.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
Mayor Karen Bass, who said about 600,000 SNAP recipients live in Los Angeles, said in a statement Friday that “no one in Los Angeles should have to worry about putting food on the table because of circumstances beyond their control.”
Volunteer Diane Jackson, 72, is loading boxes of fresh produce into a car not far from her home. Earlier that morning, her son had been waiting in line for food.
“He has seven children!” she said. “He’s got to be here. I’m glad they’re here – it feels good.”
Volunteers were greeted with fist bumps, blowing kisses and shouts of “thank you.”
Maxx Bush, 79, who lives near the Forum, said while waiting in line that she was angry because people’s incomes weren’t increasing even as groceries, housing, insurance, medicine, gas and other necessities became more expensive.
“Our elected officials fail us because we vote and put these people into office who tend to have personal vendettas against each other and forget about the most important thing, which is the people.”
Lawyers for the USDA opposed the states’ request for a temporary restraining order to disburse the emergency funds, arguing that the $5.25 billion was set aside “in the event of natural disasters and other uncontrollable catastrophes” that could cause more damage later. Emergency funding will fall short of the roughly $9 billion needed to cover all benefits through November, according to the USDA.
Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom activated the National Guard to help package food and directed $80 million donated to food banks Go stock up. Newsom’s office said more than 63% of SNAP recipients in California are children or seniors.
President Trump said: “I have directed our attorneys to ask the court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as quickly as possible” In a post by Truth Society on Friday. “This has been delayed due to Democrats shutting down the government…I’m honored to provide the funding.”
On Saturday, Bonta responded suddenly.
“The Trump administration chose to withhold food aid from those in need. They chose to let people starve, and are now only changing their tune through litigation,” Bonta say on X. “It should never have come to this in the first place.”
Two people leave a food pantry in Long Beach on Saturday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
Around noon Saturday, the Forum parking lot was a cacophony of sounds: the roar of car engines, music blaring from car stereos, the roar of fire trucks in the distance, children screaming, the roar of planes bound for nearby Los Angeles International Airport.
Rayvone Douthard, 51, drove a white Nissan truck to pick up food, with the windows rolled down and a cover of Tierra’s 1967 song “Together” playing on the stereo. Douthard, a DJ wearing a brightly colored tie-dye T-shirt, said he receives federal food aid and is concerned about funding delays.
“This is not right,” he said. “Donald Trump needs to stop what he’s doing. Everybody needs food.”
Then he turned the music up again.
“But I’m optimistic about it,” he said, pointing to the busy parking lot. “Let’s all work together. Just like the song says!”
