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- 111325 Tell Congress: Reinstate USAID Funding And Save Lives Now
111325 Tell Congress: Reinstate USAID Funding And Save Lives Now
After over 60 years of saving lives, the Trump administration shut down United States Agency for International Development (USAID)—leaving millions of people worldwide without lifesaving assistance.
Between 2001 and 2021 alone, USAID saved an estimated 92 million lives, including 30 million children under five. Now 90% of its programs have been terminated, including HIV/AIDS treatment, emergency food assistance in famine-stricken regions, educational programs for Afghan women and girls, and disease prevention programs that saved millions of lives.
While the administration eliminated the agency, Congress can still save it.
Congress has the power to end this crisis. They can:
Pass emergency legislation to restore USAID with full funding
Override the administration's termination of $75.9 billion in programs
Hold oversight hearings on the unprecedented destruction of America's foreign aid capacity
Federal judges have already ruled aspects of the aid freeze unlawful. Congress made USAID an independent executive agency by statute in 1998—only Congress can legally eliminate it.
But as Trump’s illegal shutdown of USAID has continued, it has meant more mothers dying in childbirth, children dying from preventable diseases, and families facing starvation.
In solidarity,
Action Collective