On Feb. 13, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to unfreeze the billions of dollars in life-sustaining foreign aid suspended by executive order in January. The order, which cited “enormous harm” to global networks of relief agencies and the populations they serve, was met with relief by Christian anti-poverty and anti-hunger ministries.
But even amid relief, the chaos of the last month has been relentless, say direct aid providers like World Vision and advocates like Bread for the World.
Aid and advocacy organizations told Sojourners that President Donald Trump’s actions have upended the crucial work of the U.S. Agency for International Development — and its partners. In addition to the immediate layoffs across aid networks, stopped shipments of food and medicine, and other budget crises caused by the frozen payments, the organizations are also trying to make sense of which programs and funding qualify for the exceptions granted by executive orders and interdepartmental memos.
After Trump’s executive order, the State Department issued a waiver for the funding of “life-saving” programs. But trying to determine which foods and medications count as “life-saving” has resulted in confusion while shipments of those very foods and medications rot and expire in waiting, Rev. Heather Taylor, managing director of Bread for the World, told Sojourners.
“Even if you suddenly say press go again … people are starving and the food that was good is not good anymore,” Taylor said.
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And even with the court order, several outlets have reported that the Trump administration is flouting the judge’s instruction and continues to withhold vital funding. On Feb. 23, the administration laid off around 2,000 staff members from the agency. Over the course of the next few days, a judge gave the Trump administration two days to comply with the court order to release funds, Justice Department argued it couldn’t comply with the order, and the Supreme Court put a hold on the judge’s order, allowing the administration to continue withholding funding for now.
On the same day courts ordered the Trump administration to unfreeze funding, Rev. Eugene Cho, president and CEO of Bread for the World, submitted a testimony to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, outlining the effects of the freeze so far:
- 200,000+ American jobs supporting U.S. foreign assistance programs have been lost
- 14,000 American contractors have lost income due to the closure of USAID contracts
- 30 million people are at risk of losing access to clean water
In specific countries, Cho noted, the outcomes could be catastrophic, even with a temporary suspension of the programs they rely on. In the Philippines, over 30,000 children no longer had access to critical child protection systems during the pause. As a result, they were exposed to risks of abuse, exploitation, neglect and violence, as well as recruitment from militias and gangs.
For direct aid providers like World Vision, the tension has remained high, as they wait to see what will count as lifesaving according to the State Department waiver. Like other agencies, they want to make clear that their mission is to save lives. Even with baseless allegations that they and other aid groups are wasting government funds, World Vision said they welcome accountability.
“We recognize and support the importance of ensuring accountability in foreign assistance. Our focus is on minimizing disruptions and seeking the waivers and funds needed to implement exceptions to lifesaving programs. Our commitment to serving vulnerable communities through humanitarian and development work remains strong, and we will continue to comply with all relevant regulations,” World Vision said in a statement emailed to Sojourners.
Trump’s day-one executive order created a 90-day pause in foreign development assistance funding, and on Feb. 4, a memo went out placing all USAID staff on leave. On that same day, Bread for the World launched its Nourish our Future campaign at the U.S. Capitol, with over 900 people participating online and a bipartisan slate of legislators speaking about the need to shore up aid systems at home and abroad.
Joy Lee, program administrator for Wheaton College’s Humanitarian Disaster Institute, was tasked with speaking to Bread for the World’s global hunger advocacy. Even with systems being actively dismantled around them, Lee said, she felt a sense of resolve in the room.
“So much of this is about a vision for what can be good,” Lee said. Seeing the group’s commitment to continue pursuing that in chaotic and difficult times was, for her, “an anchor of hope.”
Securing individual programs that fall under USAID has been like piecing together shards of glass and splinters of wood after a blast.
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“I don’t think there’s any going back to the USAID we once knew,” Taylor said. “God is a miracle worker, but the writing is on the wall.”
As they advocate to save various programs, she said, saving the lives of starving children around the world has not proven compelling. Instead, she said, Bread for the World and other anti-hunger organizations are trying to highlight the role of foreign aid in national security and the economy at home.
“The moral argument is still important, but it’s not the one that is winning the day,” Taylor said.
For example, Food for Peace, which ships American-grown food supplies across the world and was previously touted as a way to counter the spread of communism, could be saved, largely because farmers in Kansas are a major supplier of the $65 billion in exports to USAID countries. The state’s Republican Sen. Jerry Moran introduced a bill to fold the program into the Agriculture Department. But saving the program on behalf of its domestic revenue may change some of the focus of Food for Peace. Taylor is monitoring the legislation to determine how Food for Peace would function as part of the USDA.
“We don’t yet know if this is a good thing or not,” Taylor said.
While Bread for the World continues to track and advocate for programs at risk of being permanently cut, Taylor reiterated the importance of church-based advocacy. Members of Congress need to hear from their constituents that the anti-hunger efforts of the federal government matter to the electorate, she said. Bread for the World has launched a letter-writing campaign to that effect.
Sustained advocacy will be essential to salvaging anti-poverty programs, Lee agreed. It’s understandable that communities are overwhelmed by headlines right now, she added. “It’s very hard and it’s coming fast.”
She urged communities not to pull back, but to find comfort and strength in each other.
“Keep finding communities to be grounded into,” she said. “It’s definitely not work anyone should do alone.”
Bekah McNeel is a freelance journalist living in San Antonio. She reports on the intersection of faith and early childhood for Sojourners.
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