NEW YORK (AP): Last Christmas, Shanita Matthews prepared a party for her family of three: roast chicken, barbecue stews, spinach, macaroni and cheese.
This year? They will stick with tuna and cookies, among the few items that can be allowed in the supermarket.
“We’re not really doing Christmas, I guess you can say that,” said Matthews, who lives in Suwanee, Georgia. “We are fighting. We are tired and all I have is my faith ”.
Like nearly ten million other Americans, Matthews has been out of work since the viral pandemic erupted in the U.S. economy in March, causing a devastating recession and widespread unemployment. Now, many months later, they are facing a holiday season they could hardly have foreseen a year ago: too little money to buy presents, cook big festive meals, or pay all their bills.
Nearly eight million people have plunged into poverty since June after spending $ 1,200 on checks the government gave to most Americans in the spring and an additional $ 600 weekly unemployment benefit that goes expire in July, according to research by Bruce Meyer at the University of Chicago and two other colleagues. And finding a job is getting harder and harder: hiring in November slowed for the fifth month in a row, with U.S. employers adding the lowest number of jobs since April.
There may be some relief, potentially, on the way. This week, Congress approved a $ 900 billion pandemic rescue package that includes an unemployment benefit of $ 300 a week, cash payments of up to $ 600 for most people, and a renewal of the jobless assistance programs that are about to expire. On Tuesday night, however, President Donald Trump injected doubts about the urgent need for federal aid by attacking the bailout package as inappropriate and suggesting he could not sign it into law.
Meanwhile, help may not arrive soon enough for Matthews. With a negative bank balance, he worries that his account will be closed if he does not receive financial help soon.
Matthews, 41, has been struggling with his finances since he had to close the wedding business in March, when the ceremonies were canceled and any need for centerpieces and floral arrangements that he had suddenly evaporated do. The Georgia Department of Labor denied aid to Matthews. He does not understand why and appeals the decision. But the process is so slow that he has waited months just to get an audience.
Despite being a registered nurse, Matthews has been unable to get a job. She can only work late, because she often needs to help her 6-year-old daughter, who has to do e-learning at home when virus cases increase at her school.
Matthews’ car recovered when he was unable to track payments. Most of her husband’s earnings go to a $ 1,600 home mortgage. That leaves them with about $ 200 a month for groceries, utilities and a $ 50 internet bill, a necessity for their daughter’s schoolwork.
Matthews hopes a family member can step in and buy a Christmas present for his daughter.
“We want to be able to have food, water, heat,” he said. “They’re the things that interest us the most.”
Charities say they have been overwhelmed by requests for help, a sign that many are in deep financial difficulty. United Way expects the number of calls to the 211 phone line it funds to double from last year to 20 million calls, mostly from people in need of help paying rent or electricity bills. Feeding America says many of the people appear in food banks they are the first timers.
In desperation, Sheyontay Molton turned to Twitter for help after a series of events left her penniless to buy gifts for her four children.
The father of his children lost his job this year. Molton, 28, who lives in San Antonio, Texas, had to temporarily stop working as a DoorDash delivery driver after falling off the wreckage of a truck that severely damaged his car in October. He used part of his rent money to repair it, leaving it behind on bills.
Having noticed on Twitter that influential and celebrities on social media were providing cash to some people in need, Molton created an account and tweeted about his situation. Someone sent him $ 200 through an app – money he plans to use for groceries. Another Twitter couple asked him to create an Amazon wish list and then bought his children a doll, cars and other toys for Christmas.
Without the donations, Molton had planned to tell his young children that Santa could not come because he was taking extra precautions against the coronavirus.
“Stupid, I know,” he said, but “it would have saved me more time.”
The struggles of low-income workers and the unemployed contribute to a weak holiday shopping season that is likely to drag the economy as a whole. Retail sales fell 1.1% in November, a month that is usually strong as the purchase of gifts begins. Some economists expect retail sales to decline again this month, mostly because governments impose more business restrictions and rising coronavirus cases drive consumers away from shops and restaurants.
A short holiday is what Summer Kluytman has imagined. He had to tell his two teenage children not to expect the kind of Christmas presents they’ve typically received in the past, like the $ 400 Oculus virtual reality headset that was under the tree last year.
After losing two art teaching jobs, Kluytman had to pass food stamps to help pay for groceries. Her husband’s salary, which works for a cable company, is for renting her home in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Kluytman is spending $ 100 on each child this Christmas for hoodies and other clothing, below the $ 500 he spent each year. He plans to hold movie nights, where they will meet in the living room for a little catch.
“I think they’re fine with us spending time together instead of a lot of things under the tree,” he said. “But it breaks my heart a little bit.”
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Rugaber reported from Washington.