Potluck EAT-IN to support National Day of Action to get Real Food in Schools! September 7, 2009

Hey! Bring yourself, your friends and family, and a tasty homemade potluck dish to Dolores Park on Labor Day, September 7, from 1 to 5. Don't forget a blanket to sit on and [non-disposable] cups, plates, cutlery, napkins. We're hoping to be set up close to the playground.

If you or anyone wants to get more involved than just bringing a dish, here are some suggestions:

bring extra blankets to spread out our space,
bring a folding table (for the food)
contact local shops for picnic-y food donations,
speak at the event, or invite someone else to speak

This potluck is part of a National Day of Action to show our support to provide children REAL FOOD at school. You may have heard of it as the Time For Lunch campaign. This fall, the Child Nutrition Act, which is the bill that governs the National School Lunch Program, is up for reauthorization in Congress.

In the 1966 Child Nutrition Act's Declaration of Purpose, the Congress stated, "In recognition of the demonstrated relationship between food and good nutrition and the capacity of children to develop and learn, based on the years of cumulative successful experience under the National School Lunch Program with its significant contributions in the field of applied nutrition research, it is hereby declared to be the policy of Congress that these efforts shall be extended, expanded, and strengthened under the authority of the Secretary of Agriculture as a measure to safeguard the health and well-being of the Nation's children, and to encourage the domestic consumption of agricultural and other foods, by assisting States, through grants-in-aid and other means, to meet more effectively the nutritional needs of our children.”

Today, one in four children is overweight or obese, and one in three will develop diabetes in his or her lifetime. In the face of this crisis, our schools are financially struggling to feed children anything but the overly processed fast food that endangers their health. For many children, school lunch is their only guaranteed meal of the day.

The National School Lunch Program provides a meal to more than 30 million children every school day. By giving schools the resources to serve real food, we can grant 30 million children the freedom to be healthy. By teaching children to eat well, we can make a down payment on health care reform. By providing children with locally grown fruits and vegetables, we can support local farmers and create green jobs in our communities. By purchasing local food, we can stop wasting oil needed to transport food and reduce the impact on our environment. By raising children who enjoy real food, we can start laying the foundation for America’s future prosperity.
By passing a Child Nutrition Act that works for children, our nation can take the first step towards a future where no child is denied his or her right to be healthy and where every child enjoys real food.

http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/campaign/time_for_lunch/the_platform/

Official Website: http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/campaign/time_for_lunch-detail/san_francisco_ca_eat_in/