Assist and listen to one another

The Legislature recently approved a bill to de- fund the cash assistance program as a part of the larger budget ( June 29, “Wolf Signs a Budget that Lacks Some of his Priorities”). The Pennsylvania Cash Assistance Program offered eligible individual recipients $ 205 per month and had a sliding scale for groups of recipients based on the number of people in the group.

That monthly amount, along with programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, has offered individuals without resources options to buy food and other necessary items. ( It should be noted, though, that even with the cash assistance program, it is almost impossible to maintain rent and utilities.) These programs can serve as the only thing keeping the recipients’ heads above water until they can find long- term solutions.

A group that is routinely in need of such stopgap measures is the disability community. The federal Supplemental Security Income processing time is between three to four months, leaving even eligible recipients with at least a 90- day window in which it may be difficult to buy food and other necessary items, along with whatever added costs these individuals may have as a result of their disabilities.

Ending this program is another attempt to remove options for people with disabilities to live independently and to take part in society.

As a society, we have an obligation to assist one another as we all find our paths to be able to live our best lives. Sometimes that means funding programs that help us while we find long- term solutions; sometimes it’s acknowledging that we deserve the right to quality housing and services even if we can’t or don’t work; and sometimes it means adding services to help us live fuller, richer lives. Regardless, it always means listening to us and respecting our voices. D. RAJA SANDOR Lawrenceville