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Kajeana Tillman spent the last few weeks not knowing if she would have money to buy her own groceries. She is one of millions of Americans with disabilities who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.
“I have $3 left on my [SNAP] card right now,” the 51-year-old told The 19th on Friday.
Tillman has a disability but prefers to be identified as “a regular person, just like everybody else.” She lived with her mother until 1996 when her mother passed away. Tillman then lived with her great-grandmother until 2001, when Tillman’s great-grandmother became too old to help care for her.
“I had to get my own place because she needed extra help. So I moved into a residence where I can get help too,” Tillman said.
She now lives in her own apartment in the Bronx. She has a roommate and gets services from YAI, an agency that supports people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She shops for her own groceries and cooks for herself; Some recent favorites include veggie tots, chicken and salmon prepared in her air fryer.
“I’m trying to eat more healthy food,” she said.The Trump administration’s reluctance to fund the SNAP program during a record-breaking government shutdown has brought intense instability and uncertainty to a program 1 in 8 Americans rely on to be fed. People with disabilities like Tillman disproportionately rely on SNAP to survive...