Women in Philly document life for Witnesses to Hunger

 "This is Saturday morning at about 7:30. I get to the 61 bus stop and I didn’t even pay attention that I was gettingready to step in it.  There’s puddles… puddles!  This person lost alot of blood because it’s been almost ten hours and it’s still out inpuddle.  Somebody’s kid could have fallen in that, touched it, anything. I don’t think the cops were there, because I know they would have had yellowtape around it or something."

"I’m just tired, I’m just all tired. I just wanna get my daughter away from here and get my family away from this because it’s like they don’t care about the low-income people. If you’re not making enough money as they’re making, they don’t bother it. And I don’t think it’s right, I don’t think it’s right to us."

An innovative project at Drexel University, called Witnesses to Hunger put cameras in the hands of dozens of low-income women in Philadelphia so they could document their lives and struggles and environment.  Each creator has put up a slide of her work with occasional commentary. For once, people whose lives are often discussed and reported on tell their own stories.

The project has greater goals than just documentation, but also targets changing policy.  To see the entire project, go to:  http://www.witnessestohunger.org/ 

"This is a breakdown,this is a breakthrough.  Let me give a list of my hungers and my strugglesto you. Underage Pregnancies. Welfare. Child Support. Housing Authority. RapeVictims. Drug Dealing. High Crime Rates. Juvenile Life. This is an example ofthe things we go through coming up in the hood, in the streets of Philadelphia.

We need to get up and speak for our rights. If we don’t speak up, who will?  Are you aware of my hunger, my struggleand my pain?"

Whitney is 21 years old and occasionally lives with her mother and her two younger brothers aged 18 and 13. At age 13, Whitney's mother brought Whitney to the door of the Department of Human Services (the child welfare office) and claimed she could no longer take care of Whitney. Whitney was suicidal. From there, Whitney spent time in a group home in the foster care system. She returned to Philadelphia a few years later, and lived in an abandoned house with friends. In order to make ends meet, Whitney worked several jobs, some illicit, some regrettable. Now Whitney works at a well-known clothing store, and writes songs and spoken word which she hopes her friends will put to music.