As high school students, it can be difficult to pay attention to politics. Even if you don’t watch television news or are not subscribed to a newspaper, social media highlights current events through mutual reposts, memes and propaganda. Often, people choose to ignore policies and global affairs because they do not feel personally impacted. But as President Donald Trump and his administration frequently enforce new policies that make a notable impact on local communities, turning a blind eye is nearly impossible.
Being involved in one’s community is not a requirement to notice the impacts of Trump’s policies. At the beginning of Trump’s presidency, he enforced tariffs on U.S. trading partners. His objective in terms of tariffs, according to the official White House government website, is to reprioritize U.S. manufacturing. Tariffs impact the costs of goods being imported into the U.S., which can cause economic strains for small businesses.
According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, “Tariff increases can force [small businesses] to either raise prices on consumers, absorb the additional costs and reduce their profits, or even cut back on inventory or operations.”
Due to the competitive nature of businesses, it can be difficult for small, local businesses to survive the implementation of tariffs.
“[Small businesses] don’t buy in bulk, so it’s going to hurt them more,” economics teacher Renee Grisch said. “For a lot of them, it’s going to hurt them a lot.”
Although tariffs have mostly impacted small businesses and the automotive industry so far, other businesses have also been hurt by the implications of tariffs. This is apparent in local businesses in the Aurora area.
“Some of our local manufacturing sites have seen material increases of up to 40% depending on what country they have sourced their raw materials from,” city of Aurora Alderman Jonathan Nùñez said. “In most industries, the increased cost of goods has been spread out between the importer, supplier and finally the consumer. In the end, increased tariffs impact everyone’s wallets.”
Additionally, many larger and more popular companies impacted by tariffs have raised their prices, so consumers have become responsible for the additional cost. The increase of prices in essential goods can cause hardships for families nationwide.
Although tariffs may add costs for both consumers and businesses, other federal policies have impacted families’ abilities to afford basic necessities.
“I don’t think it’s all about tariffs,” Grisch said. “The overall cost of living is going up.”
Many families that relied on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) did not receive their benefits at the beginning of November due to the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) claimed that there were not enough funds to deliver to SNAP recipients due to the government shutdown.
According to the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), in the Kane County Aurora Family Community Resource Center office (FCRC), 20,768 households require SNAP benefits, as well as 41,296 individuals. Many families who rely on SNAP have had to find alternative ways to purchase or receive food.
“SNAP cuts and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deployment have become a tag team of sorts that have led our community to grow in hunger without an immediate solution except food pantries,” Nùñez said. “When you create an environment of food uncertainty and fear of leaving one’s home, you are left with countless families that grow hopeless.”
Families who are eligible for SNAP are low-income and need the assistance. Since many families did not receive SNAP benefits, lack of funds to purchase food without government assistance caused them to go to food pantries. Food pantries must adapt to the inflation in the number of families that require food. Many food pantries are non-profits, including the Interfaith Food Pantry and Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry in Aurora. This means that they rely on volunteers and donations to provide food to families. With the sudden demand that food pantries are receiving, they may struggle to supply everyone.
“They will have to give more than they normally give, and we could really see a shortage of food,” government teacher Jessica McNally said.
Now that the government shutdown has come to an end and families are receiving their benefits, new regulations have implemented new eligibility requirements for the program.
According to the official city of Chicago government website, as of Dec. 1, SNAP program participants must have a job or volunteer more than 80 hours per month unless they qualify for a specific exception, and they must have lawful residence or be a Cuban or Haitian entrant. This means that refugees, asylum seekers, victims of human trafficking, certain victims of violence and torture and other historically qualified statuses will not be eligible for SNAP benefits.
Low-income families that were previously eligible for SNAP will now have to find an alternative way to purchase and receive food. With the increase of demand for food pantries from non-eligible individuals, people missing SNAP funds and those dealing with increases in cost of living, the city of Aurora has partnered with local food pantries in order to ensure everyone receives their necessities.
“I specifically am working on a volunteer drive to increase the numbers of drivers to help with food deliveries from the pantries,” Nùñez said.
As Aurora makes efforts to assist homebound individuals receive their pantry items, other collectives, such as Aurora Mutual Aid (AMA), have volunteered their time to provide education, mutual aid and advocacy for the community.
AMA has installed two community fridges, the Scout Fridge and the OG Fridge, in the city of Aurora that are a community-led initiative, open to everyone. Although they are not a solution to food poverty, they allow community members to take what they need. In addition to refrigerated items, they accept pantry items, toiletries, hats, gloves and socks for the winter.
Undocumented immigrants who are low-income are not eligible for SNAP, so they may rely on community projects and non-profits to receive necessities. With the growing appearances of ICE and an escalating number of deportations, many fear leaving their homes to shop or get goods.
Additionally, Illinois Workers in Action (IWA) has helped provide education and advocacy for community members to address the growing ICE involvement in nearby cities.
“The city of Aurora has worked with several chambers, non-profits and other local organizations in order to host Know Your Rights training and best practice presentations for businesses, and we have played as a liaison to other business resources from local to state and even federal where available,” Nùñez said.
With Aurora’s large immigrant population, growing concerns over ICE’s presence has troubled community members. As a result, the city of Aurora ensures the safety of members by not collaborating with ICE.
“We will not engage with federal operations regarding immigration,” Nùñez said. “This is also in alignment with the Illinois TRUST Act.”
In collaboration with different organizations, Aurora is providing a supportive community to undocumented immigrants by educating citizens and providing resources like presentations, detailed step-by-step information cards regarding ICE situations, whistle kits to inform community members of ICE presence nearby and community watch groupchats.
Additionally, IWA has provided signs for local businesses to display on their doors to prevent ICE from entering.
Despite the safeguards put in place to protect community members, ICE altercations have occured. ICE officials have entered workplaces and waited outside schools and private homes.
“Locally, people have been a little more afraid or on edge about what could happen to their friends or their neighbors,” McNally said.
In order to prevent run-ins with ICE, members of the Aurora community have formed several ways to inform others on their whereabouts. The Aurora Rapid Response Team (ARRT) has built a community based on reporting ICE sightings. They make sure the community is informed of their location, record ICE interactions and ask detainees for their contact information to alert relatives.
If community members have concerns about their safety or needs, Aurora officials advise contacting your alderman. All contacting information can be found on the city of Aurora website.
“It is our responsibility to connect you with services or organizations put in place to help,” Nùñez said.
