GRESHAM AID

When times are hard we all can use a bit of aid, whether it be a helping hand, someone to talk to, or a bit of cash. With a lot of individuals and businesses falling on hard times, some extra money is something that would help everyone out tremendously.

But when that money isn’t made available – fairly – that could pose a problem. What if you were to learn that while you or your business/employer did not receive any government COVID-19 relief funds, others who are living in different cities or counties were receiving money on more than one occasion, and are still able to receive funds?

The pandemic has affected me and those around me. It has affected all of us in many ways, physically, mentally, or most of all, financially. When this all began last March, a lot of people lost their jobs, and others had to shut down their businesses – and up to 53% of small businesses in the U.S. still don’t expect to recover from COVID for at least another six months.

Trust me, I’ve seen it first-hand: The job market is not pretty right now, as it’s feels like it’s next to impossible to get a job, and a lot of people are struggling because of that. As of January 2021, the total of unemployed Americans reached past 10 million people.

I never thought we would reach those kinds of numbers, yet in this short amount of time we have. So, when I learned of possible financial aid I was ecstatic. I mean, there are bills to pay, food to buy, kids to take care of, and household items that are in constant demand, so my family and I went to apply for a form of aid, thinking that this was a Godsend because we could have really used that money – only to soon find we were denied because we were living in Gresham, instead of Portland.

This would be one of many times we would run into this type of barrier, until we eventually stopped trying, and we would regularly hear from people around us that they would also be denied aid for the same reason: They lived in Gresham and not Portland.

There were also times we learned of aid being given out to a certain amount of people if they met the qualifications and the distribution would turn into a madhouse as soon as the word got out, with lines stretching around the block, lines going up the street, fights breaking out, and COVID regulations/protections ignored as people would come in groups and pack in, hoping to get some sort of aid for their families or themselves. And with all that, a lot of people had to be turned away until a later time, or the promised money would run out, or those individuals just didn’t qualify.

I’m not sure if any of you have heard of the Black Resilient Fund, but I myself at one point had to apply for aid from them, and it was months before I heard back because the group was so overworked trying to fill the gaps that our government was unable to. Even though I qualified for their assistance, it took longer still to receive.

These are the times we are living in, and I want answers, because I’m gonna be frank here: I’m not exactly sure why we aren’t receiving any further public aid (not including federal “stimulus” checks) or why it’s coming off, somewhere, and leaving us feeling like we aren’t invited.

With the way things are right now, even though this economic pain is all starting to feel like the “new normal” for some of us (or, to be honest, nearly everyone), money is still a necessity. At the end of the day, if your Wi-Fi bill isn’t paid, you or your children can’t attend online school in the morning. Or if you work from home? Good luck, doing so without a signal.

It doesn’t feel fair to me that I have to live in a certain city in order to receive critically important aid, just to contribute to pay bills, or take care of myself and those in my household, because the job market is crazy nowadays. As of now I’m working, but these were the desperate thoughts I had before I was lucky enough to get a job.

A lot of folks are still thinking like this, and the situation needs to change and hopefully it will or has since this all has taken place, somehow – because no one should have to fear whether they can even put food on the table or gas in their car, since with everything else going on with COVID-19, that should be the least of our worries.