MCC Washington Memo

by Gabe Schlabach

Over the last year, United States residents watched as nearly half their monetary wealth vanished. Bear Stearns, an 85-year-old investment bank that survived the Great Depression, crashed and burned, triggering a massive stock market decline. The U.S. Treasury subsequently saved AIG, fearing its demise would plunge the country deeper into an economic abyss. Congress authorized $700 billion to bail out additional financial firms and banks, as well as an additional $800 billion to stimulate the economy.

As a result, the recession has slowed, but economists estimate it will take several years before unemployment falls back to 2007 levels and the economy returns to “normal.” In the meantime, many U.S. residents are struggling to keep their jobs (if they still have them), keep their health care (which is tied to their jobs) and choose between paying their bills or buying food, medicine and other necessities.

But around the world, the economic collapse has impacted the lives of billions more acutely, especially in places where people struggle to survive during “good” economic years.

Seemingly forgotten by the news media, the “silent tsunami” — as the head of the UN World Food Program refers to the global food crisis — rages on. While international food prices have fallen from their 2008 peak, food remains more expensive than in years past. As of March 2009, cereals— basic staples that much of the world relies upon for basic sustenance, such as rice, wheat and corn—still cost 71 percent more than they did in 2005.

Coupled with lower wages and weak (or nonexistent) social safety nets, people in developing countries, who bear no responsibility for the lending excesses that led to the crisis, are suffering most from its effects.

In the context of this economic crisis, the MCC Washington Office is launching a year-long campaign entitled “Abundant Life: Economic Justice forAll.” Throughout the next four issues of the Washington Memo, and online at washington.mcc.org/life, we will highlight four areas of U.S. policy where action is badly needed: health care, debt relief, housing and trade.

This issue focuses on U.S. health care policy, a timely issue as Congress moves to pass the largest health care reform bill in decades. It includes background articles along with worship and advocacy resources, which can be used on Sunday, July 19th: our recommended day of action and prayer for health care.

We encourage congregations across the United States to participate. We welcome your advocacy in urging Congress to ensure that economic justice is truly guaranteed for all, in the United States and around the world.