New Mexico has become the first state in the US to outlaw 'lunch shaming', a practice where schools humiliate children over unpaid meal fees. Governor Susana Martinez signed the 'Hunger Free Students Bill of Rights' on Thursday, prohibiting school districts from singling out children whose parents have not paid lunch debts.
The law bans tactics such as stamping children's wrists with messages like 'Lunch Money', forcing them to do chores to work off debts, or providing a cold cheese sandwich instead of a hot meal. Instead, schools must provide a USDA reimbursable meal to any student who requests one.
The move follows high-profile incidents elsewhere, including a child in Arizona reportedly stamped with 'Lunch Money' on the wrist to pressure parents into paying. Experts warn such practices can lead children to skip meals and cause lasting embarrassment.
Anti-poverty group New Mexico Appleseed praised the law. Executive Director Jennifer Ramo said: 'No child should be forced to wipe down cafeteria tables or throw away a meal because of a debt. Children whose parents owe money for school lunch will no longer have to miss meals or face public embarrassment.'
A 2016 survey by the School Nutrition Association found that three-quarters of 1,000 school districts surveyed had unpaid student meal debt, with a median of $2,000 per district, though some districts faced up to $4.7 million in unpaid lunch debt.
