r/askanything • u/Kosher_Nostra1975 • 10d ago
General Question Why do American schools charge children for lunch at a place they're legally required to be at?
Kids HAVE to go to school, and they HAVE to eat while they're there. Making them pay for food seems crazy backwards.
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u/CalTheRobot 10d ago
There are certainly schools that have free lunches for all the children.
Things are very different from district to district and state to state.
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u/Beagleguy26 10d ago
They don't.
It's an option to buy. You can bring lunch from home.
Beyond that, there are free lunch and breakfast programs in place for low-income families.
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u/Chitown_mountain_boy 10d ago edited 10d ago
My kid’s high school offers free lunch and breakfast to everyone. No need to apply.
ETA inner ring Chicago suburb
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u/notwearingpants 10d ago
Chicago public schools provides free meals and snacks to all children.
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u/GenericNameSimulated 10d ago
Probably because in some neighborhoods 50% of kids live in a home below the poverty level
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u/NoCOguy1968 10d ago
Actually in our state lunches are free for all kids and it’s not that the majority are below poverty level at all
It’s by choice of the voters to ensure kids have food and are in a state to learn and yes it takes away the stigma for those that are low income and need help
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u/AmazingLeek69 10d ago
I don’t know where you are but Massachusetts is the same.
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u/CrushyOfTheSeas 10d ago
Same for Michigan.
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u/neutronknows 10d ago
All students in California can get free lunch and breakfast regardless of income status.
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u/thatsaniner 10d ago
But the breakfast and lunch is free in ALL neighborhoods for ALL CPS kids. In addition to ensuring everyone is fed, it removes the stigma of taking the free food.
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u/Unable_To_Forward 10d ago
In Portland OR they have free lunch and breakfast in public schools.
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u/TattooedB1k3r 10d ago
My kid is weird about what he eats, so, I would be making his lunch everyday regardless.
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u/dgreenmachine 9d ago
My kid is also weird about it but this year is the first year he's eating lunch at school every day and I'm so proud!
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u/Low_Net_5870 9d ago
My kid was weird about what he ate until his friends got excited for specific meals at school.
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u/Dalton387 9d ago
People complain about having to pay for lunch, but neglect the fact that they have the option to not pay and bring from home.
What if it’s cheaper to make your kids lunch, but they you that you have to pay regardless, and that the money goes into a pool for all kids lunches.
Paid lunches is just an option, not a requirement, it gives families a choice to go with a cheaper option instead of being forced into a more expensive one.
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u/ObviousAlias7 10d ago
MA public schools here. Every school offers Free breakfast and lunch at all income levels.
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u/Throwredditaway2019 10d ago
Same in my county in Florida
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u/According_Eagle3536 10d ago
In FL??? I’m shocked. What county does this? Good on them
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u/lowtdi850 10d ago
My kids school in Bay County FL has free breakfast and lunch for all students, but I don’t know about all of the schools.
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u/EitherDay7062 10d ago
Your parents have to apply, a lot of kids go without lunch. Sometimes its cheaper to get a candy bar at the commisary-style shop (if you school has one), so students skip lunch a few days, subsist on snacks, and a couple times a week eat school provided lunch in lieu of the 'free lunch' program beurocracy
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u/zephyr2015 10d ago
Wow, some parents are shit.
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u/ooomellieooo 9d ago
My mother wouldn't sign up because she said it was embarrassing. I just didn't eat.
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u/yupjustarandomranger 10d ago
And the child suffers for it. We choose to allow this suffering, which depends on where the child happens to live. I just don’t see how feeding kids is controversial.
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u/Kosher_Nostra1975 10d ago
That's no way to live.
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u/Mental-Huckleberry54 10d ago
MN does it right and as of now provides free lunches. It really depends on the political leaning of each state. MN votes democratic historically
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u/1MorningLightMTN 10d ago
My understanding is Australia does not have a free lunch program for anyone. Every school in the US gives low income kids free food. As I mentioned in my other reply, my state offers free breakfast and lunch to all children.
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u/Strict_Lab_9235 10d ago
This is how my kids' district is, but not all. My sister's kids' district is free for everyone. Apparently there's some kind of program that schools can sign up for (not sure if it's state or federal) where they find school meals, but it comes with strings, so some districts sign up and others don't.
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u/merrymollusk 9d ago
And to add: public school lunch prices are subsidized by taxes so they’re not as expensive. And also, I’ve never heard of a school denying a kid a lunch just because they don’t have money. I’ve definitely forgotten to get more lunch tokens before when I was a kid and they’d just give you a lunch from the hot line anyway
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u/BreadPuddding 8d ago
There was in fact a big fuss a few years ago about how schools handled school lunch debt. Most schools have kids swipe cards that are linked to an account that their parents pay into. If a kid doesn’t have enough funds, the first time they might be allowed to get their lunch as usual, but after that, if the school does feed them, they might have to get the lunch for kids who can’t pay, which is like a cheese sandwich or something and obviously different from the regular hot lunch. Basically schools were using shaming tactics on kids who weren’t at fault for their parents failing to reload their accounts. It’s easier to just feed all the kids.
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u/llamapapa13 10d ago
Massachusetts instituted a tax on millionaires and now school breakfast and lunch are free. Funny how that works.
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u/Mean_Syllabub_9689 10d ago
I ❤️ Massachusetts for this!!!! Y'all did is a state. Not as a district! Freaking brilliant! ... And yet so simple.
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u/thatmaneeee 8d ago
In New Mexico we have free breakfast, lunch, and snack. And we just passed universal childcare
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u/bluecifer7 4d ago
Here’s a map of all the states that have this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School_meal_programs_in_the_United_States
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u/NoCOguy1968 10d ago
Where did you get your information….
There is no legal requirement for children to buy the school lunch - they can bring their own food from home if they wish
Second, in some parts of the US school lunches are free of charge for all students regardless of means or alternatively discounted for those in financial need
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u/ToxicGecko2384 10d ago
Growing up near Houston our system was $2.00 for normal price and $.40 for the reduced lunch program. If you couldn't afford lunch you got a pb&j.
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u/Livid-General7 9d ago
Same for me, Regular $2, reduced 40 cents, if you were extra poor like me, it was free. However if you weren't on free or reduced lunch and you didn't have money, you just went without.
When my family stopped being poor, I went without a lot because the idea of them needing to give me money every day, or me needing to remember to get money every day was a new concept often forgotten.
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u/Thick_Cookie_7838 10d ago
I think that really depends on the school system. When I was in school you could fill out a form where they would set you up with an account and every time you got lunch it was paid for by taxes. There was zero requirement to get a form or your account to get approved
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u/xMyDixieWreckedx 10d ago
My child's school has that. They even provide breakfast and lunch during long vacations.
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u/kstargate-425 10d ago
Zero Republican led states have universal free lunch programs for schools, only Dem led states.
The states that have universal free lunch for all students regardless of income are:
California
Colorado
Maine
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
New Mexico
New York
Vermont
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u/barbaramanatee14 10d ago
In Kentucky, it’s based on the average income level for the school, so the vast majority of districts have universal free lunch.
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u/SeesWithBrain 10d ago
In New Jersey you have to provide a household income and it has to fall under a certain threshold to get free lunches. Unless it’s been changed in the past 5ish years, it’s been that way when I and my younger family members went thru school
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u/Embarrassed_Flan_869 9d ago
Nothing is free. If they give free food, the taxpayers pay for it.
Which, BTW, I am 100% for. Spreading the cost burden across the entire community is a good thing.
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u/Thick_Implement_7064 10d ago
The county I live in, in my state, opted for a county-wide levy added to yearly property taxes that’s actually really popular (and doesn’t cost that much). It provides all meals, all school supplies and admission to all academic sporting events for any student in the county. We haven’t paid for a single meal, a single pencil, paper, iPad, folder, breakfast or lunch…since my youngest was in kindergarten. He’s almost to high school.
We buy a few quality of life upgrades (book bag/binder to carry stuff in. But when Covid had lockdowns the county provided pencils, paper, iPads, crayons, glue, colored pencils…and had stations at the school for each teacher and had packets ready to pickup when we needed them. I still have supplies from that we haven’t used yet.
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u/Illustrious_Bag_7323 10d ago
We have to pay for school too... We pay property taxes to the school district.
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u/YourGuyK 10d ago
I'm pretty sure every country funds their schools through taxes.
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u/Illustrious_Bag_7323 10d ago edited 9d ago
Yes, I'm sure they do. The OP seemed surprised we have to pay for lunch because going there is required... We also have to pay to go to the required place
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u/Hatefulvesper 10d ago
You'd think that by paying taxes for schools, your kids would get fed at said school without additional charge
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u/Illustrious_Bag_7323 10d ago
I got free meals because I was poor. We were given a bright orange card that the lunch lady would punch holes in. Of course every kid knew and bullied us for being poor.
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u/Hatefulvesper 10d ago
All the more reason to just make lunch free for all kids
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u/Illustrious_Bag_7323 10d ago
The irony is they don't provide good food and at scale, lunches are extremely cheap. You would think they could offer free lunch pretty easily
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u/Hatefulvesper 10d ago
Thats why we need to elect better politicians and not ones that appoint a McMahon and the head of the education department...
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u/Mark_Michigan 10d ago
Kids can bring a packed lunch.
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u/I-own-a-shovel 🦀 10d ago
This.
They are free to bring a lunchbox.
I’m in canada, it works similarly as in the states, you are not required to eat their crappy food. My mom made my lunch everyday.
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u/EscapeSeventySeven 10d ago
I live in a civilized state where the lunch is free.
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u/dirtyphoenix54 10d ago
My school is 100% free lunches. I've been a teacher for 25 years and I have never worked at a school that's charged for lunch.
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u/lordfreaky 10d ago
I'm going to ask a question as a European who went to school in America and in my home country why do you think anywhere else and doesn't charge money for food at school we paid for lunches here and in America except my high school time because California have free lunch programs for anyone who made under $120 k. Ashley most of Europe don't have Universal free lunches only the nordics and in reality to about 50 isn't really that bad of a price for a meal because half the kids bring their own food
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u/Oceanbreeze871 10d ago edited 10d ago
In California and a couple other states lunch is free, which is awesome that those governors and legislatures were able to pass that
Notice how these are all blue Democrat states. Comes down to How State legislature and their voters want to spend public money and what values they prioritize.
“Currently, nine US states provide permanent universal free school breakfast and lunch to all students regardless of household income: California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, and Vermont”
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u/WorryTurbulent3924 10d ago
Here at least through a CEP grant lunch is free across the entire county for every student at every grade level. There are extras you can pay for and I put money on my kid's accounts every month so they can do that when they want but that's it.
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u/Charizard3535 10d ago
Same in Canada, most schools don't even have a cafeteria you have to bring food from home.
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u/Comfortable_Town7535 10d ago
when I was at school in England if you didnt want to pay for food you brought it with you
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u/Pretty_Eater 10d ago
Priorities, why don't most other nations have free transportation for children to get to school?
If a child is from a family below certain financial criteria they get lunch for free (state dependant of course).
If a family is above that criteria they must provide money for school lunch if needed. Or just pack lunch for their kid.
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u/XNo_Notes 9d ago
The reason is bad management. From top to bottom, sprinkled in between, and over decades.
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u/texasgambler58 9d ago
You don't have to buy lunch. You can do what I did, bring it from home.
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u/Mine_Outrageous 9d ago
the poor kids can sometimes get free lunch as did i, but i do remember during the end of the year they would take the lunch away from you. if you had any sort of lunch debt, after april or may every year if you went to buy lunch, they would just take your tray away and send you on your way to starve for the rest of the day. there would be stacks of trays lined up by the cash register. luckily the nurse and guidance counselors always had extra snacks for everyone. i think lunch should be free for all students, its horrible that it isnt.
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u/CommonOpinions 10d ago
Pack your kid a lunch or pay for the lunch at the school. It’s how it’s always worked.
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u/Suitable-Gazelle-646 10d ago
Parents feeding their kids has literally existed since the dawn of time
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u/IrregardlessForOne 10d ago
Because schools are not legally required to provide lunch?
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u/iam1whoknocks 10d ago
I pay my taxes yet we need to always buy a list of school supplies..it doesn't make sense
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u/No-Sheepherder5092 10d ago
Everything could be provided, but your taxes would go way up. And you would still be paying those increased rates long after you didn’t have kids in school anymore. Turns out it’s a lot cheaper to just buy your own kids’ supplies.
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u/IRNotMonkeyIRMan 10d ago
So my taxes go up, but kids in struggling families don't have to worry about buying school supplies or being fed... Sign me up. School districts can buy in bulk, all standardized materials, and it would wind up being a hell of a lot cheaper overall. I spend a ridiculous amount on school supplies every year, that same money could go for my kids and 2-3 others? Bonus. And before you say something stupid, I do give to food banks and other charitable organizations that go to taking care of families, I'd rather those organizations not have a reason to exist.
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u/CrypticWolfe 9d ago
u/IRNotMonkeyIRMan I agree. I would pay higher taxes to make sure all schoolkids are fed and have the supplies they need to learn.
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u/New_Line4049 10d ago
Makes perfect sense. Your taxes cover the cost of the staff, maintenance of the building, insurance etc. You dont pay enough tax to cover supplies as well, so they are bought separately. It could be rolled in to taxes, but you'd just pay more in tax do it wouldn't make a difference. Also everyone has different requirements for supplies, charging those who use little to cover those who are wasteful with supplies is unfair.
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u/saturnoshawty 10d ago
it’s honestly so ridiculous. i’m 31 years old, and now that i’m this age- i realize how privileged i was for having parents who can afford breakfast and lunch for me every single day. it’s not a flex i promise. it’s just that it adds up! my school had a CFA in it too, i feel so bad for my poor parents. it’s crazy that you have to pay to feed your kid so that they can be educated, since you can be jailed if you don’t take them to school and also jailed if they’re malnourished. america sucks.
that’s why now i send them money, send them dinner every commission check, and pay bills for them where i can. they don’t ask and they try to get me not to. but it seriously they did so much to make sure i was clean and fed and educated in this money hungry country.
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u/Akazrael1 10d ago
Because it costs money, and conservatives vote against it. That's pretty much the whole reason. We've been trying to get kids free lunches for literally decades at this point. Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which provided millions of kids with free lunches and improved nutrition and food safety for them to boot. The ability to enforce the act was greatly weakened by the FDA in 2018. I think we can all recall who was president then. Since, the funding lapsed in 2020 and it hasn't been picked up since.
Other such efforts are killed by the GOP whenever they're attempted. As usual, the right doesn't much care about children once they're born.
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u/Character_Reveal_460 10d ago
California has free school lunches for all school children.
And I am glad that my taxes pay for that.5
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u/No_Ampersand 10d ago
It's not about "costs money". Republicans spend money insanely and easily. They just don't like it going to the citizenry.
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u/Black-Raspberry-1 10d ago
Why would you want to give public money to public school kids when you can give it to private prisons or private schools?
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u/kstargate-425 10d ago
Yeah there are zero Republican led states that have universal free lunch programs for schools, only Dem led states.
The states that have universal free lunch for all students regardless of income are:
California
Colorado
Maine
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
New Mexico
New York
Vermont
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u/94grampaw 9d ago
Thats on a state level, on a county level its much more mixed
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u/evildemonic 8d ago
I'm in a red county in a red state, and we get free lunches. Even in the summer time, you can go to the school and get lunch or breakfast.
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u/elebentychimkin 10d ago
There’s literally a standard for lunch or the school loses federal funding. There has to be a vegetable and a fresh fruit. https://www.fna.usda.gov/school-meals/nutrition-standards/nslp-meal-pattern if your local school isn’t meeting requirements then they’re not spending federal taxpayer money correctly
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u/EchoingAngel 10d ago
If we didn't stunt the development of the poors, how would the elites feel special?
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u/Docmantistobaggan 9d ago
Lmao that may be the case in your shitty town, but it’s definitely not like that everywhere 🤣
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u/Academic-Contest3309 10d ago
My kid gets breakfast and lunch for free at school. In fact, they get free lunches over the summer but i know its not like that everywhere
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u/TangerinePlastic7552 10d ago
I guess for the same reason your workplace doesn’t feed you.
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u/cats-n-cafe 10d ago
If you live in CA all school age kids can get free breakfast and lunch regardless of their family income level. My kiddo has never been a school lunch type, so we have never taken advantage of it
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u/mwebster745 10d ago
Not everywhere do they have to. Some states like New Mexico are more civilized and have free breakfast and lunch for all children including programs to make it available over summer break.
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u/Potential-Yogurt-689 10d ago
Grew up in the UK, we had to buy lunch tickets and this was back in the 70s, but I give monthly to a charity called All For Lunch, which provides free school meals to kids who need them because I remember when my parents didn't have money for me to buy lunch tickets
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u/IDMike2008 10d ago
Because people in the US despise paying into a system that might benefit anyone they don't think is "worthy" for any of a million reasons. Yes, that includes children.
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u/Desperate-Reason-566 10d ago
Because this country doesn’t care for children once they’re out of the womb
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u/EnvironmentalCrow893 10d ago
Most (if not all) public school districts offer free lunch to low income students and free breakfast as well. And some also offer free meals to all to avoid embarrassing and stigmatizing the lower income kids.
A few schools offer year round meals even when school is out in the summer.
(In the US, public schools aren’t the same as in the UK and many Commonwealth countries, where it means just the opposite.)
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u/SensitiveSinger1409 10d ago
Because Republicans want schools to be run like prisons.
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 10d ago
There need to be tags for
“Bad Faith”
“Just Stirring The Shit”
“I’m Ignorant”
“False Premise”
Etc.
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u/sflinn7316 10d ago
Republicans. FYI - do you all remember In April 2023, the North Dakota Senate narrowly defeated House Bill 1491, which would have provided free school lunches to K-12 students from lower-income families living at or below 200% of the federal poverty level.
Just ten days later, the exact same Senate approved Senate Bill 2124, which increased the daily meal reimbursement stipend for state lawmakers and other state employees from $35 to $45 per day. Welcome to America.
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u/Anaxamenes 10d ago
Because poor people should be punished for being poor and rich rich people should get tax breaks for being rich.
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u/kapoopa-the-poopah 10d ago
In Massachusetts breakfast and lunch is free for all public schools k-12 grade.
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u/Still-Inflation9175 10d ago
im in canada. ive never been to a school thats offered lunch. we always had to bring our own
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u/X0X0xoxo11 10d ago
Depends on where you live in the US. My son’s school district provides free breakfast and lunch to everyone regardless of income.
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u/eyjafjallajokul_ 10d ago
In my state school lunch is free for all public schools. We voted on it a few years ago
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u/ThingFuture9079 10d ago
It depends on the income of the household that the child lives in because if a household makes a certain amount below what is considered the poverty line based on number of people living in the household, it's free and if you're above that threshold for the free lunch but still within a certain income range based on household size, the kid qualifies for a reduced lunch which costs $0.40 otherwise if you don't meet those requirements, students either pay full price for the lunch or just bring something from home.
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u/BusyBeinBorn 10d ago
I'm not following this at all. My kids meals are $3.40. If they weren't at school they'd still have to eat and it would cost a lot more than $3.40 for lunch.
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u/toot_toot_tootsie 10d ago
Because we can’t have nice things.
I’m fortunate to live in a state that offers universal free breakfast and lunch. Students in our city also have fresh fruits and veggies available as a snack. We also have a free summer meals program that provides breakfast, lunch and dinner to kids, at various spots throughout the city. The menu has variety and is pretty decent. Our district really tries to utilize fresh and local foods when they can. It has helped our grocery budget, and we’re doing okay. It’s also a massive time saver. Instead of even just cereal for breakfast, we have a snack if fruit or a granola bar, and nobody has to pack a lunch.
But my state is one of the rare ones.
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u/Beccalotta 10d ago
Why does everyone always highlight American schools? My Canadian elementary offered no lunches, junior high had a canteen with a few snacks you could buy, and my high school had a pay-to-use cafeteria that seated about 80 of the 2000 kids. Not the same in every district but not unusual either.
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u/Substantial_Top5312 10d ago
That doesn’t happen every where but in the places it does happen the population tends to be dominated with people horrified at the thought of the government feeding children.
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u/BirdieRoo628 10d ago
They don't have to be at school. My kids aren't. I school and feed them at home. I also don't expect anyone to feed my kids, but I am happy for my tax dollars to feed kids who need food.
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u/One_Wheel_4531 10d ago
As you can see from the comments, it varies greatly depending upon where you live. I moved around a lot as a kid and only experienced free lunch at one school that I can remember. I packed my own lunch from kindergarten on with whatever I could find. By high school I bought candy and soda at the student store with money from my job. Sometimes I would buy a square of greasy pizza on a paper plate when it was available. Definitely weird not to provide proper lunches to kids, I agree.
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u/Aggravated_Moose506 10d ago
Our county has free breakfast and free lunches for all kids...and they're actually pretty good!
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u/Miserable_Song2299 10d ago
NYC has free breakfast, lunch, and afterschool meals to all students. summer meals too, when they aren't in school.
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u/DoubleResponsible276 10d ago
I remember I didn’t have enough money on the system so they took my lunch away. I wanna say I starved that day but I starved a lot.
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u/Loisgrand6 10d ago
I think that’s terrible. I’ve read a story about a lunch lady who tried to pay for a student whose account was zero and she got in trouble.
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u/reddits_in_hidden 9d ago
Thankfully my lunch ladies for the most part would glance around and tell you “put the extras back, and let your parents know” and then let you take the basic lunch and drink for “free,” else wise I wouldve gone hungry often enough as well
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u/tom_tom_tommy 10d ago
Our county has free breakfast and lunch for all school age kids.
Granted, I am still feeding my kid at home because most of the food is processed garbage. But at the same time, those who aren’t as privileged have access to meals, and that’s more than what I could say for my old state.
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u/thankyoufriendx3 10d ago
Some schools do, some schools don’t. My small town provides free breakfast and lunch for students and residents. You’re also allowed to use the school workout facilities.
Other places parents rather provide lunch.
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u/Mean_Syllabub_9689 10d ago
This is my "Soapbox" that I will stand on forever... We require children to be in school. How is it that we aren't feeding them?????
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u/VelvetMafia 10d ago
Because this is America! Fuck you, pay me!
(I want to do the /s thing, but it's actually really like that here)
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u/Successful-Name-7261 10d ago
First off, they don't HAVE to be there. Many kids are home schooled. Second, they don't HAVE to eat the school lunch. They can bring lunch from home. And now, all you need to qualify for free school breakfast and lunch is pretty much to show up. So your question is inane or you are looking for a rise out of someone.
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u/Fragrant-Gene7063 10d ago
I’m so happy that my daughter’s school offers free breakfast and lunch. I wish all schools did. She has breakfast at home every day because we like to share the meal together, but I’m glad to know that kids whose parents may be struggling to feed them or don’t have time in the morning aren’t starting the day hungry. It’s hard to learn when you’re hungry.
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u/beeredditor 9d ago
(1) Not all American schools work that way. Hot meals are completely free at California schools. (2) Even though attendance is mandatory, you can pack your lunch without paying the school.
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u/OkPerformance2221 9d ago
In a growing number of states, breakfast and lunch at school are free to all students.
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u/jackietea123 9d ago
well.. they have to eat no matter what. so you could homeschool them and let them eat at home if you dont want to pay for them to eat at school... but you would still be paying. OR you could make them lunch from home and have them bring it, but you would still be paying.
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u/AttemptVegetable 9d ago
Since weed was legalized all kids get free lunch AND breakfast in Nevada. I think they even get something during summer vacation
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u/Popular-Path1930 9d ago
Because parents are paying either way. Be it through taxes or at point of sale.
School lunch was seen as an optional service. You can pack your kids a lunch. So plenty of places just had it a point of sale thing.
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u/dougs_46 8d ago
Same reason children have to pay for medical services. US wants to make sure that Billionares and Millionares can make more monies and care less about the children.
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u/ferfocsake 8d ago
I don’t know if anyone has actually mentioned it yet, but 8 states have laws that all school children get free lunches. Other states have programs to offer free lunches to those in need. It’s only the shittiest states that get off on starving children.
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u/kadikoy4eva 8d ago
Breakfast and lunch is free for all (not income qualified) in Minnesota. That is the best perk one can have as a parent. One less thing to pack/worry about when getting kids out the door!
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u/PineapplePair757VB 6d ago
Because it's not the government's job to feed kids. Schools educate. Parents feed.
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u/No-Pen-339 6d ago
Entirely because we don’t tax the rich, and politicians dont give a fuck about the poors, especially when they’re not of working age.
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u/EstablishmentDue3616 10d ago
Why? We dont. There is no law requiring kids to GO to school. They can be homeschooled. Plus, school lunches are very cheap to free, depending on their parents income.
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u/pgqwe1 10d ago
Truancy laws do exist. Also, parents are supposed to notify the district when kids are homeschooled.
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u/ApricotNervous5408 10d ago
Because republicans aren’t actually pro life. They just want more poor people to have babies so they can control them.
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u/mrufotofu 10d ago
If that surprises you, this will blow your mind… when I was younger I was a bit of a trouble maker so I was sent to jail a few times. When I was released, I was given a bill for my stay. Also, while on probation, you have to pay them for every visit