In the aftermath of the election, Jennifer Jones-Austin, CEO and Executive Director of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, appeared on MSNBC’s Politics Nation with Reverend Al Sharpton to sound the alarm over Donald Trump’s plans to slash federal social welfare programs to help fund an unprecedented mass deportation program beginning on Day One of his new administration.
Jones-Austin, a national voice in the social justice and faith-based community, raised the prospect that Trump could change the federal eligibility requirements for discretionary programs that Americans rely upon to finance his immigration purge. If this were to occur, it would limit access for Pell grants, nutritional assistance, and school food programs.
Instead, Jones-Austin argued that nonprofit and faith-based organizations should mobilize and advocate at the federal level to implore Republican congressional leaders that such cuts, particularly in areas like education and healthcare would affect their constituents as well. She also stressed that nonprofit human service groups like FPWA already are struggling to meet the sheer demand of basic services for immigrants, migrants, and everyday Americans.
For more information about FPWA, visit www.fpwa.org.
