Is Food Security a Constitutional Right?

by Greg Plotkin · 2010-02-22 10:00:00 UTC
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If you live in the Brazil, the answer is now a resounding yes.

On Feb. 3, the Brazilian Congress voted to approve an amendment that will make food security a constitutional right afforded to all citizens. This is the result of a significant push over the last several years to expand the social and economic rights promised to all Brazilians. Tell your representatives in Congress to make freedom from hunger a constitutional right in America.

As stated by Fiat, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to framing food security as a basic human right, this decision is significant because it places a value on feeding Brazilian citizens "above changes in government and reaffirms the obligation of the Brazilian State to respect, protect and fulfill the human right to adequate food."

In fact, the Brazilian government has recognized this responsibility for several years now. In 2003, the nation became one of 17 countries to implement a National Program for Food Security -- an initiative of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization. The focus of this effort in Brazil has been to not only help the country's poorest citizens afford more food, but also to help impoverished farmers find markets to sell their goods.

As one of the most developed nations in the world, shouldn't the United States recognize food security as a basic human right too?

The fact is that it already does (sort of).

While American citizens certainly enjoy some of the most sweeping freedoms of any country's residents, there is no provision in either the Constitution or Bill or Rights that specifically gives Americans the right to be free from hunger.

However, in 1945 the United States did sign the UN's Universal Declaration on Human Rights, which states, "everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food."

Since, technically, the United States acknowledges its responsibility to provide its citizens with food, don't you think our government could do a better job of helping the feed the 50 million people in the country who are chronically hungry?

Photo credit: abdallahh

Greg Plotkin currently works for Flying Pigs Farm in Shushan, NY. He is dedicated to eliminating inequalities in who has access to healthy food and alleviating hunger.
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