Neither shopping, nor wrapping gifts, nor making other preparations to receive Santa on Christmas Eve.
Thousands of Americans woke up on December 24 in long lines at food banks in an attempt to get food for Christmas dinner.
“It's all the fault of COVID-19,”
a Latino couple lamented in front of the reporter for our sister network NBC News, Gadi Schwartz, as they advanced in a long line at a food bank in Santa Monica, California.
"We came to get food so we could have dinner at Christmas," they said.
[Follow our coverage on the coronavirus pandemic]
The man said that until March 13, he worked in a restaurant, but when the pandemic began to wreak havoc across the country, he lost everything.
"Since then
we have survived thanks to a few small savings
and the recycling of aluminum and bottles," he said.
Latinos in Houston received boxes of food this Thursday, December 24 Telemundo news
As a result of COVID-19, historic unemployment records have been set this year, and more and more people have faced financial difficulties.
Before the pandemic, more than 35 million people in the country were hungry, according to data from
Feeding America
.
Now, with millions of Americans unemployed and a second aid check failing Dec. 24 by the House of Representatives, this nonprofit estimates that
more than 50 million people may experience food insecurity in 2020
, including 17 million children.
The ranks of those who need food are not dwindling across the country.
At Christmas this is much sadder
Dec. 24, 202001: 58
The picture is repeated throughout the country, whether in New York, Florida or Texas.
In Houston, the line at the Convention Center food bank began at 3:00 am this Thursday, and
people had to wait more than 5 hours to receive the food box
.
The Telemundo Noticias correspondent, Edgar Muñoz, spoke with several people who were waiting for help.
They were mostly Hispanics.
Many said that for the first time they had been forced to go to a food bank and that they did so due to the crisis they are experiencing due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Hundreds of people in Houston lined up from 3:00 am to receive boxes of food - Telemundo News
Food banks have been overwhelmed this year by the number of people who need help.
On some days, the Houston Food Bank in Texas supplies 1 million pounds of food to people in need.
Before the pandemic, the group's average daily distribution was 450,000 pounds.