Exodus From Hunger: We Are Called to Change the Politics of Hunger

Though tremendous improvements in health and education have helped slow the epidemic of global hunger in recent decades, more needs to be done to help lift people out of poverty, says Beckmann, president of the antihunger advocacy group Bread for the World. Beckmann strongly supports new international efforts such as the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, rock star Bono's ONE campaign, and programs funded through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. But he also shows how no country has made gains in staunching hunger without government antipoverty programs. Beckmann offers a multifaceted solution to domestic poverty, including citizen activism, community soup kitchens, good jobs, and government policies and programs. This book will be appreciated by church groups eager to bolster their charitable outreach, especially since it includes several inspiring vignettes of ordinary Christians doing extraordinary things to help stop hunger. The book's weakness is that it covers too much ground without offering a structured or easily applicable way forward. (Oct.) (c)
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It is within America's technical and financial power to help end world hunger in our lifetime, if we set our hearts and minds to the task.

Contrary to what many people believe, the world has made measurable advancements against hunger and poverty over the last several decades. But too often the binding constraint on further progress is a simple lack of political will. As a result, one of the most powerful ways to affect change is often the most neglected--political activism.

In this powerful and hopeful book, David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World and a leading anti-hunger activist, looks at the causes of hunger, presents case studies of countries that have made great strides against it, and puts a human face on the problem by sharing stories of people who are, quite simply, hungry every day. The problems can seem overwhelming but Beckmann lays out a clear and workable plan for effectively using political channels to make great progress. He not only challenges us to get involved, he shows us how.

It is no less than our call to do so.