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Each day thousands of Maine children go to school hungry. In fact, Maine is first in New England for food insecurity among our school-aged children. The long-term consequences of food insecurity are devastating. Without enough food, children have trouble concentrating, they struggle to retain information they learn, and they are more likely to have disciplinary

AUGUSTA, Maine – Democratic lawmakers may be feeling some pressure to take a harder line against welfare fraud following an election cycle that saw Republicans advance in the House and Senate after campaigning on welfare reform. One Democratic leader has signed on to welfare reform bills, and Republicans have renewed efforts to make it easier

As an asylum seeker here in Maine, I am a believer in human rights for all people, and my efforts to work for human rights forced me to leave the only home I ever knew. I began to receive threats against my life when I was involved in the Global Youth Anticorruption Network as an

In 1994, civil war broke out in my homeland, Rwanda. Like many others, I was routinely tortured and feared for my safety and my life. My only option was to escape the political insecurity and ethnic conflict that consumed my home country. I came to Maine in 2007, with a bachelor’s degree and five years

AUGUSTA – Lawmakers on the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee listened to more than four hours of testimony Wednesday on a half dozen bills sponsored by state Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, aimed at making major changes to the state’s welfare and General Assistance programs. Among other things, Brakey’s bills would make those who have

… Antonie Bikamba, who fled political persecution and torture in his native Rwanda in 2007, said he relied on General Assistance for roughly a year until receiving a federal work permit. He ultimately went back to school, earned a master’s degree in conflict resolution and now works as a caseworker at Preble Street, a nonprofit