Fuming SNAP recipients threaten to loot if food stamps are cut Nov. 1: ‘Stay the f–k out of my way’
TikTok users are slamming the USDA’s announcement that the federal food assistance program SNAP will not pay out benefits in November due to the government shutdown, and are threatening to take matters into their own hands. TikTok
Millions of Americans who rely on food stamps are taking to TikTok, threatening to steal groceries if their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments stop next week amid the ongoing government shutdown.
“I’ma tell y’all straight up like this, I just got that text that the link is definitely cut off for November. Y’all better stay out of my way in these stores because I’m walking out with carts and I’m not paying for anything,” one angry SNAP recipient warned in a viral video.
Another user echoed the sentiment, saying, “Since they wanna take food stamps away, I’m gonna go to Walmart, grab anything I want, put it right in the basket, and walk out … I’m not paying for a thing.”
Roughly 42 million Americans — about one in eight nationwide — receive SNAP benefits, which average $350 per household each month and are loaded onto electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards for food purchases.
Those benefits are now in jeopardy. Payments are scheduled to stop on November 1 after Senate Democrats voted for the 13th time to block a GOP-backed measure to reopen the government. The bill failed in a 54–45 vote, leaving funding for SNAP and other federal programs in limbo.
SNAP recipients began receiving warning texts last week about the potential cutoff, sparking outrage online. “I’m gonna be stealing like it ain’t no tomorrow,” one user declared. “If you think I’m not walking out that store, my cousin will make sure you regret it.”
Another woman blamed President Trump for the shutdown, saying, “Trump done messed up. He’s talking about people not getting food stamps in November or December. He better get ready, because it’s about to go down.”
She added, “You don’t play with people’s food stamps. Folks are about to start taking what they need.”
The possible halt would be unprecedented. SNAP benefits have never before been suspended due to a government shutdown. In previous shutdowns — including those in 2018 and 2019 — the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released funds early to ensure uninterrupted payments.
This time, the USDA announced it would not use its $6 billion contingency reserve to keep SNAP funded through November.
However, the Trump administration said it would redirect tariff revenues to sustain WIC and other nutrition programs for women and children. In response, 26 states — including New York — filed a lawsuit accusing the USDA of unlawfully withholding funds and seeking a court order to compel the agency to release emergency money to keep SNAP operating.
“SNAP is one of our nation’s most effective tools to fight hunger, and the USDA has the money to keep it running,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “There is no excuse for this administration to abandon families who rely on SNAP as a lifeline.”
If the payments stop as planned, it would mark the first time in the program’s 60-year history that benefits have been disrupted due to a federal shutdown.
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