Name: 從煤礦到艱苦歲月：西維吉尼亞州某郡準備迎接新的公共援助削減！ (From coal mines to hard times: A West Virginia county braces for new public assistance cuts)
Uploaded: 2026-02-23T23:07:11.000Z
Duration: 13 min 1 s

對某些人來說，現在正是蓬勃發展的時期。

The stock market has hit an all time high.

But drive just 350 miles from the nation's capital and the conversation isn't about how to get rich, but

但從國家首都開車只要 350 英里，大家談論的不是如何致富，而是

McDowell County, West Virginia, was once the nation's largest coal producer.

西維吉尼亞州的 McDowell County，曾經是這個國家最大的煤炭生產國。

It is now one of the poorest places in the country where the food stamp program started and later the opioid crisis took hold.

現在這裡卻是全國最貧窮的地方之一，食品券計畫在這裡發源，後來鴉片類藥物危機也在此蔓延。

Today, one in three households there depends on those food stamps.

如今，當地有三分之一的家庭依賴這些食品券。

And now the program that has fed families for decades is facing the largest cuts in history.

而這個數十年來供養家庭的計畫，現在正麵臨史上最大的削減。

We went to McDowell county last month and learned that this is an all too familiar pattern.

上個月我們去了 McDowell County，發現這是一個太過熟悉的模式。

McDowell county sits deep in the southern coal fields of West Virginia, stretching more than 500 square miles across the Appalachian mountains.

McDowell County 坐落在西維吉尼亞州南部煤礦區深處，橫跨阿帕拉契山脈超過 500 平方英里。

There's just one traffic light and more churches than we could count.

這裡只有一個紅綠燈，教堂多到數不清。

It's a place where clean drinking water is hard to come by.

這裡連乾淨的飲用水都難以取得。

水龍頭轉開的水可能變成這樣。

I think if you would ask probably nine out of 10 individuals here, they would tell you that they feel very much forgotten.

我想如果你問這裡十個人，大概有九個人會說他們覺得自己被遺忘了。

The government, every institution that you can think of.

政府，還有你能夠想到的每一個機構。

Pastor Brad Davis grew up in the coal fields just over the county line and now leads congregations at five United Methodist churches in McDowell.

Brad Davis 牧師在縣界另一頭的煤礦區長大，現在在 McDowell 鎮的五間聯合衛理公會教堂帶領會眾。

He spends his days listening to those who trust God, each other, and

他每天花時間傾聽那些信任上帝、信任彼此，以及

People say, well, why don't people just move?

人們說，嗯，為什麼人們不乾脆搬走？

And my response to that is, why should we?

我的回答是，為什麼我們要搬？

Betty Stepp has lived in the town of Anahwalt for all of her 76 years.

Betty Stepp 在 Anahwalt 這個小鎮住了她 76 年。

Everybody honks at everybody long enough to remember when there was still a school, a.

大家夠熟了，還記得以前還有學校的時候。

如果你牛奶喝完了，你得開車去。

Yet the only business left in town to be on their best behavior.

但鎮上唯一還在營業的店家，就得好好表現。

Donald and Tom are beloved by all the widows in this area.

Donald 和 Tom 在這個地區深受所有寡婦的喜愛。

A retired teacher's aide, Betty and her husband live on a fixed income.

Betty 是一位退休的教師助理，她和先生靠固定收入生活。

If I go to the grocery store, I can't get out of there in less than $200.

如果我去超市，沒有花到 200 美元出不來。

What have you had to cut back on in these times?

這段時間你不得不削減哪些開銷呢？

Across the country, families are feeling the squeeze.

Food prices are almost 20% higher today than in 2022.

今天的食品價格比 2022 年高了將近 20%。

I've heard a lot of folks from this community say, if we don't help each other, no one's going to help us.

我聽過這個社區的很多人說，如果我們不互相幫助，就沒有人會幫助我們。

Linda McKinney runs the county's largest food bank.

Linda McKinney 經營著該縣最大的食物銀行。

You're allowed to come once a month, entirely on donations and volunteers.

你可以每個月來一次，完全靠捐款和志工。

Since the government shut down this past fall, when Americans around the country lost SNAP benefits or food stamps for weeks, Linda says more new faces have been coming in lately.

自從去年秋天政府關閉以來，全國各地的美國人有好幾個星期失去了 SNAP 福利或食品券，Linda 說最近有更多新面孔來了。

We have a lot of young mothers that come, and

they'll say, I never thought I'd have to come.

她們會說，我從沒想過我需要來這裡。

And the children is what breaks my heart.

They didn't ask to be brought into this situation, and they suffer daily.

他們並沒有要求來到這個處境，而且他們每天都在受苦。

Every weekend, more than 100 children receive backpacks filled with food so they have something to eat when they're not in school.

每個週末，有超過一百個孩子會收到裝滿食物的揹包，讓他們在學校沒飯吃的時候有東西吃。

The thing that we're finding, we have parents that say, well, my kid didn't get a snack bag.

我們發現，有些家長會說，我的孩子沒有拿到零食袋。

And then you find out the child on Friday is eating that food on the bus.

然後你會發現，那個孩子在星期五的公車上就在吃那些食物了。

The food that's supposed to last them through the weekend, they're eating on the bus.

本來應該讓他們週末吃的食物，卻在公車上吃完了。

At the White House, you'll hear about job growth and victory over inflation.

在白宮，你會聽到關於就業成長和戰勝通膨的說法。

We just had fantastic reports on inflation way down.

我們剛才收到了通膨大幅下降的超棒報告。

But in McDowell, the median household income is about $30,000.

但在 McDowell，家庭的平均收入大約是三萬美元。

在這裡，負擔能力不是一個時髦詞彙。

It's the difference between buying groceries or paying for heat.

這是買雜貨還是付暖氣費的差別。

In the 1940s, McDowell county was rich in coal jobs.

在1940年代，McDowell County 盛產煤炭工作。

These mines powered America, helping to build railroads and cities.

這些礦場為美國提供動力，協助建造了鐵路和城市。

At its Peak, nearly 100,000 people lived here, earning some of the nation's highest hourly wages.

在巔峰時期，這裡住了將近十萬人，賺取全國最高的時薪。

But as machines moved in, mining jobs dwindled and the local economy collapsed.

但隨著機械化的進步，礦業工作機會減少，當地經濟也是以崩潰。

In 1960, John F. Kennedy campaigned for president.

1960年，約翰·甘迺迪競選總統。

Here, I think there are at least four or five things the government can do.

在這裡，我認為政府至少有四五件事可以做。

The poverty he witnessed led him to launch the modern food stamp program.

他親眼見到的貧困，促使他啟動了現代的食品券計畫。

McDowell county residents were the first recipients.

McDowell County 的居民是第一批受惠者。

Today in McDowell, there are fewer than 1,000 coal jobs left, and only 17,000 people remain.

如今在McDowell，只剩下不到一千個煤礦工作機會，居民也只剩下17,000人。

Just in the county alone, there is not enough jobs for everyone.

光是在這個縣，就沒有足夠的工作給所有人。

26 year old Tabitha Collins was a stay at home mom until her fiance was hit by a car on the job last year and left disabled.

26歲的Tabitha Collins原本是個全職媽媽，直到去年她的未婚夫在工作中被車撞倒，導致殘疾。

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從煤礦到艱苦歲月：西維吉尼亞州某郡準備迎接新的公共援助削減！ (From coal mines to hard times: A West Virginia county braces for new public assistance cuts)

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