Bif Naked begins B.C. welfare challenge, living on $3 a day for food

Singer and performer Bif Naked will be living on $3 a day for food for the next seven days.

She is taking on the Raise the Rates’ Third Annual Food Challenge, to highlight the inadequacies of welfare rates in the province.

In B.C. a single person receives $610 a month. Once money is deducted for living expenses and rent, there is $21 a week left for food.

Why $21 for a Week’s food? Here is the breakdown (on a monthly bases):

Total welfare: $610
Rent (realistic rent for an SRO)* $450 ((Single Room occupancy, not even a 1bdrm place))
Room damage deposit $20
Book of 10 bus tickets (to look for work): $21
Cell phone (to look for work): $25
Personal hygiene/laundry: $10
Total of all non-food expenditures: $526
What’s left for food: $84

Now this is if you are lucky, some may have a bit more of other expenses so they have even less for food.
There are two videos that go with the article but I don't know how to embed non youtube videos.
Bif Naked begins B.C Welfare challenge, living on $3 a day for food

We need to do something, this is ridiculous that people have to live like this. There is absolutely no valid reason as to why anyone on this planet should be without food or be struggling to eat properly. Between Aquaponic food farms & utilizing already existing cropland How existing cropland could feed BILLIONS more we can feed everyone around the world and not use any GMO products.

Another thread worth checking out, as it does relate, due to the fact that people in North America are suffering with poverty & homelessness when it doesn't need to be like this. If we just put on a big kid pants and do the hard work, thing will be better for future generations.
Ten facts about being homeless in the U.S

couldnt help but notice you used the phrase "anyone on earth"

when he has it far better then the majority. he still has money for luxuries like a cell phone and rent.

Back when I was a kid trying to put myself through school, I lived mostly off of dried beans and rice.
Bought them by the bucket from the feed store back then.
Also baked biscuits and cornbread from scratch
Coffee,
Tea,
Eggs (cheap protein)
oatmeal
salt
That was about it most of the time.

I lived on 15 to 20 a week but I knew how to cook and ate the same food over and over.
It is tough to make ends meet on that small a budget.

Commendable on Biffs part, I remember when Emery Barnes(RIP) who was a MLA for Vancouver did this in 1986, his goal was to go a full month on the rate at the time, he rented a room..etc, I think he concluded(looked it up) at that time(86) the rate should of been about $700 for a basic standard of living, I think he had to call it off after 20 some days due to starvation/health..as I remember it.

Beer and tobacco are a human right. Those commodities should be free.
I can gather my own food.

a reply to: Bisman
He is a she


I think at least she is useing her status to help..she is local and im pretty sure she does alot of good.

While I'm not that familiar with her, believe she has a Punk band. What's she's doing is very helpful and admirable. Hope someone of status, or at least slightly notoriety can cover such in the US. By the numbers, and an estimation looks like Canadian poor are having a harder time than the poor in the US.

originally posted by: Bisman
couldnt help but notice you used the phrase "anyone on earth"

when he has it far better then the majority. he still has money for luxuries like a cell phone and rent.

Barely affording rent is now a "luxury"? I'll have to remind my wife of that.

wrong thread... how did I get here? I never clicked..

I'm not Canadian so I have a question.
The $610 is a monthly welfare check. Are there other programs available?
Here in the states we have loads of low income programs.
Subsidized housing thats based on income.
W.i.c. Coupons for foods like milk and cheese.
E.b.t. "Food stamps"

Do you have these types of programs?

originally posted by: Cuervo

originally posted by: Bisman
couldnt help but notice you used the phrase "anyone on earth"

when he has it far better then the majority. he still has money for luxuries like a cell phone and rent.

Barely affording rent is now a "luxury"? I'll have to remind my wife of that.

well its hard to keep proper perspective. the OP was referring to everyone on earth...

the "poor" in the us are pretty well off. very very well off actually.

if this stunt is all about bringing attention to the current US's "poor", and the not as luxurious standards they live compared to other US citizens. then im all for them improving upon that life so much as i dont have to pay for it. they have a right to dream. but they are not the ones suffering.

a reply to: Bisman

What rediculous world do you live in that you think the poor have it good?

Are you typing this from you're mansion in mission viejo?

a reply to: Bisman

If your assuming I'm in the middle class, you are dead wrong. My fiance are just barely keeping a roof over our head & food in our bellies. We rely on a Christmas hamper in the winter months & we buy our groceries on sale, with a lot of it being stuff that can be stretched into multiple meals. My fiance is the only one who can work because I have an undiagnosed health issue so on top of the struggles most people face, there is also all the medical expenses. I can't afford to be on half the medications that my doctors want me on and I can't afford any of the vitamins, probiotics &
minerals needed to have a healthy diet (because I have problems absorbing foods)

Thanks for the assumptions though, that was totally helpful /end sarcasm

a reply to: vonclod

Another mayor of Vancouver did that too a couple years back....I can't find any reference to it but I remember reading the story in The Province. I don't recall how long he lasted

a reply to: dreamingawake

Yes things are pretty bad up here in Canada.

A total of 1,798 people identified as homeless, with 538 living on the street, 1,136 in shelters and 124 of no fixed address, according to preliminary results of the Metro Vancouver Homeless Count conducted across the region March 12.

The total surpassed 1,715 homeless people recorded in 2010. Such a spike reverses a trend over the past three years that saw the homeless population decrease and hover around the 1,600 mark.

Troubling for Robertson is the 538 people found on the street this year, which is almost double the 273 counted by the City of Vancouver in 2013.

Number of Vancouver homeless has more than doubled

Stephen Harper & Christy Clark have been ruining Canada and making things so much harder. A study showed that B.C has more homeless children than the rest of Canada & Christy Clark things will sort themselves out, no action needs to be taken.

a reply to: Hoosierdaddy71

There is subsidize housing but there is not nearly enough to meet the demand. My Mom tried to get into subsidized housing when we were growing up (single Mom with incurable illness & 3 daughters, one of them also having an incurable illness) but after 7yrs my Mom gave up.

For some stupid reason we don't have food stamps. There are small organizations that try to help by having soup kitchens but they struggle to stay open. The Government always is slashing funding for those organizations.

a reply to: Bisman

Glad you know your geography, British Columbia is in Canada, not the U.S


This is to bring attention to the fact that $3 a day is not enough for food.

What is such a hard concept about everyone in the world having free food? Is that unfair to you, should some people be forced to starve or suffer lack of nutrients because they were dealt such a #ty hand?

In what way are poor people pretty well off?

a reply to: Sabiduria

No the clear answer is the world isn't fair and as long as I'm fine I don't care about those idiots. They can't figure out how to build a farm that's their problem. I love taking advantage of western culture and living on the backs of the poor. I mean without them I wouldn't have ANY of my luxuries. Hell I didn't even need to build my house. Thank god some Mexican came over the border.

a reply to: onequestion

I know right. Some people live in a fantasy world and are blind to the plights of those less fortunate than them.

It would be nice if there was a way to force those people to experience those struggles for a period of time. Then they would see things for how they are and want to improve things, even if it is hard work.

a reply to: Sabiduria

There's a way to do this but we can't violate tnc.