The upcoming expiration of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits has been used by far-right influencers and extremists to spread a racist myth that immigrants are the main recipients of food stamps. The claims, which have been amplified on social media platforms such as X and TikTok, depict non-white immigrants as making up the majority of SNAP beneficiaries.
In reality, data collected by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that almost 90 percent of SNAP recipients are American-born citizens, with only 1.1 percent being refugees and 3.3 percent other non-citizens. The majority of people who receive SNAP benefits are white Americans, particularly in deep-red states like Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
These narratives are being circulated to suggest that undeserving groups are getting the bulk of SNAP benefits, thereby making the suspension of these benefits seem less of a crisis. However, the reality is that the overwhelming majority of recipients of SNAP are people born in the US, many of whom are in families with children or are elderly or disabled.
Conspiracy theorists and right-wing influencers have also spread racist stereotypes of Black people demanding more benefits. AI-generated videos on TikTok, which were removed after WIRED published this article, depicted Black women ranting about their food stamp payments being cut off.
In response to the government shutdown, SNAP benefits will no longer be funded as of November 1, leaving millions of Americans at risk of losing access to critical nutrition assistance. Senate Democrats have been unfairly blamed for the lapse in funding by the Trump administration, while some Republicans are pushing back against this narrative.
In reality, data collected by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that almost 90 percent of SNAP recipients are American-born citizens, with only 1.1 percent being refugees and 3.3 percent other non-citizens. The majority of people who receive SNAP benefits are white Americans, particularly in deep-red states like Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
These narratives are being circulated to suggest that undeserving groups are getting the bulk of SNAP benefits, thereby making the suspension of these benefits seem less of a crisis. However, the reality is that the overwhelming majority of recipients of SNAP are people born in the US, many of whom are in families with children or are elderly or disabled.
Conspiracy theorists and right-wing influencers have also spread racist stereotypes of Black people demanding more benefits. AI-generated videos on TikTok, which were removed after WIRED published this article, depicted Black women ranting about their food stamp payments being cut off.
In response to the government shutdown, SNAP benefits will no longer be funded as of November 1, leaving millions of Americans at risk of losing access to critical nutrition assistance. Senate Democrats have been unfairly blamed for the lapse in funding by the Trump administration, while some Republicans are pushing back against this narrative.
theyre trying to make ppl think immigrants are gettin all the food stamps but its actually americans born & raised who are makin up most of the recipients 
its like, where do these ppl even get their info from? the USDA just dropped some serious data that shows almost 90% of snap recips are american-born citizens 
what about all those people tryna survive cuz they cant afford food for their families?? 
But seriously, like 90% of SNAP recipients are American-born citizens? That's wild! And those racist stereotypes of Black people demanding more benefits? GONE 
Can't even make that stuff up. It's crazy how some folks try to spin the suspension of SNAP benefits into a "crisis"... meanwhile, millions of Americans (mostly white people in deep-red states) are gonna lose access to nutrition assistance 
How about we focus on solving real problems instead of spreading hate and FOMO? 
IN REALITY, MOST OF THE PEOPLE WHO GET SNAP BENEFITS ARE AMERICAN-BORN CITIZENS AND MANY OF THEM ARE JUST TRYING TO MAKE ENDS MEET. 
THEY LOOKED SO REAL, BUT WE ALL KNOW IT'S JUST FAKE NEWS.
. I mean, come on, if 90% of the people getting food stamps are American-born citizens, it's not like immigrants are just swarming in for free food 
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. Can we please focus on finding solutions for those in need instead of spreading hate and misinformation? 
. It's outrageous that they're trying to spread this narrative on social media platforms like X and TikTok.
. I think we need to focus on addressing the root causes of poverty and food insecurity, rather than spreading misinformation and stoking fear about certain groups of people.
. We need to hold our leaders accountable for making informed decisions, not just reacting to sensationalist claims.
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the data shows its mostly american-born ppl who r eligible for snap benefits not immigrants or refugees so why r they the ones getting attacked? it feels like ppl r trying 2 distract us from real issues while spreading hate and fear 
It's like they think we're all clueless or something. Those far-right influencers and extremists need to be called out for peddling racist nonsense on social media. I mean, it's not even true - most SNAP recipients are white Americans! 
What's next, blaming people of color for being lazy? And don't even get me started on those AI-generated videos on TikTok... who's behind this stuff? 
SNAP benefits arent just about immigrants, its about people who need help to survive. like, what if u were in a situation where u had no other choice but to rely on food stamps? wouldnt u wanna know whos supporting u? these far-right influencers r spreading hate and misinformation to make ppl think hes gonna be the one getting all the aid 
its time 2 take a step back, educate urself, and not believe every conspiracy theory that comes ur way 
and btw it's not just immigrants, tons of white americans r also on SNAP, like I live in alabama and my cousin got them too 
anyway i'm lowkey scared cuz millions of ppl are gonna lose access to food assistance come Nov 1st 
i just hope senate democrats can fix this ASAP 
. These aren't conspiracy theories, these are real people's lives and livelihoods being affected by false narratives.
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. Like, people are literally using these racist claims to justify cutting off food stamps for actual americans in need 
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. Did u know that 1 in 5 kids in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi & Louisiana lives in a household with limited or no food? 
That's straight-up racism & we can't let it go unchallenged!
and now millions of us are gonna lose access to food because some ppl want to play politics with people's stomachs 
. And honestly, I'm so tired of people assuming that immigrants are getting all the free food