“Times are tough.” I’ve heard people say this for as long as I can remember, but for many people out there it really is true for the first time. Our nation has seen our economy teeter perilously close to the edge of a crash, and we’re still not out of danger yet.

High unemployment rates have forced many people that never thought they would need assistance to ask for help. You would think that with so many out there struggling, people would stop attaching a stigma to the word “welfare.”

Sadly, this is not the case. A friend of mine posted a comment on Facebook about food stamps to get a discussion started, and boy what a catfight ensued! Some of the people made broad generalizations about people that use government assistance.

Here’s my response: If you’ve never been there, then you should talk to someone who has before you spew out brash generalizations.

Before coming to work at The News, I worked for a few months at the Stokes County Department of Social Services. I interviewed applicants for the Food and Nutrition Services program (commonly known as “Food Stamps”). So although I have not directly participated in the program, I have talked very closely with people who have. I’ve seen their bank statements. I’ve looked at their pay stubs. Heck, I’ve even heard many of their life stories.

From what I’ve seen, there are a lot of people out there who really need a helping hand to get back on their feet. I met people last summer who had never walked into the DSS building before, and they were mortified at having to ask for help. As one of my friends put it, the whole experience can be “pride raping” for some people.

At DSS I also encountered people that knew how to cheat the system. There were those who lied, and sometimes we caught them. I’m sure there are people that we didn’t catch. There are always people who are going to abuse privileges they are given, whether it’s a driver’s license or an EBT card (the new form of food stamps), but that doesn’t mean that everyone else should be barred because of the actions of a few.

Sure, I think most welfare programs should probably be tweaked. There are things I wish I could have changed about the Food and Nutrition Services system. But that doesn’t mean we should throw the entire program out, and that doesn’t mean we should attach a stigma to people who receive assistance.

Some people say it’s not the government’s role to help people. If a person is struggling to survive, then who should help them? Family? Neighbors? Religious organizations? Non-profit organizations? Many people don’t have family members to participate in their lives. Many neighbors are either also struggling or too consumed with their own lives to reach out. Many religious organizations spend more money on the upkeep of their buildings than on outreach and missions. Many non-profit organizations are overworked and underfunded.

Somebody needs to reach out with compassion to people who are struggling to pay for the essentials. Otherwise we would live in a nation ruled by survival of the fittest, where only the strongest survive. Or perhaps I should say only those who didn’t happen to lose their job in a bad economy or have their home hit by a natural disaster would survive. Too bad about things that are out of your control. If you truly believe that way, then I pray you never hit hard times. I wonder what you would do to make it by.

It’s time for us to stop placing stigmas on people and instead offer a helping hand. If you are not a fan of government programs, then it’s time for you to go out and start helping people. There are more than enough people that could use it these days.

I don’t have a problem with taxpayers asking for government transparency and more efficiency in programs. However, I do think we should stop kicking people when they’re down.

Meghann Evans is a staff reporter with The Mount Airy News. She can be reached at mevans@mtairynews.com or at 719-1952.