Florida’s 17th congressional district could use some help.

 

Correction, make that a lot of help.

 

The predominantly African-American district, which includes portions of inner-city Miami, including Liberty City, was recently determined to have the highest number of hungry children in the nation. More than half of the families with children (50.4%) in the district did not have enough money at some point in 2010 to provide food, according to the Food Research and Action Center.

 

The national average is 18%.

 

The news follows another piece of sobering information about the 17th that came out earlier this year: that it’s also the most suffering district in America. This is based on Gallup-Healthway’s annual “Well Being Index,” which factors in the physical, emotional and mental health of political districts at the state, metropolitan and congressional levels. The 17th was ranked dead last by Gallup-Healthway in the “Life Evaluation” sub-index, in which respondents rate their own lives and future. The 17th was rated the third-most miserable congressional district overall.

 

For 18 years the district, which includes a large Haitian-American community, was represented in Congress by Carrie Meek and her son, Kendrick. Since January, the representative has been Democrat Frederica Wilson.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Food Hardship in America 2010 (Food Research and Action Center)

Frederica Wilson's Congressional District Has the Most Hungry Children in America (by Kyle Munzenrieder, Miami New Times)

Miami-Area Congressional District is the Most Suffering in America (by Kyle Munzenrieder, Miami New Times)