Real Life of an MSW

I love the Op-Ed section of the paper. I believe we all need to write at least one letter on something we’re passionate about in our lifetime. In saying that, I applaud this reader

The sudden loss of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits didn’t just create a food crisis — it revealed something deeper: When the federal government walks away from its basic responsibilities, local infrastructure determines what happens next.

This month, the Trump administration withheld food assistance from millions of families. While President Donald Trump builds a ballroom to entertain billionaires and corporate CEOs, working people go hungry, pay higher prices and lose access to care. Families turned to local groups for help — groups already stretched thin long before this latest political game hurt our neighbors.

Progress Alliance members stepped in because our grantees were already on the ground providing food and immediate relief across the state — Lavender Rights Project and Puget Sound Sage in King County, Nuestra Casa in Sunnyside, Pacific County Voices United on the coast and Spokane Community Against Racism in Spokane. Community infrastructure is political: When local organizations are organized and resourced, they can solve problems together and protect their neighbors. When they aren’t, families fall through the cracks — and powerful actors exploit that division.

If we want families to be safe from federal dysfunction, Washington must keep building strong local and state infrastructure that shows up when D.C. doesn’t.

Margot Spindola,