Randy Cohen, a pawnshop owner in Chicago, told CBS that he’s seen a major uptick in the number of federal employees coming into his shop in order to sell their things. The government has been shut down for the longest continuous period in U.S. history, now at 24 days. Cohen says he sees between 10 and 20 federal employees come in each day.
And people aren’t just selling old knickknacks and college textbooks. One example of a high-cost item Cohen says a furloughed worker parted with? A van. “Oh he loves this thing. You should’ve heard what he put into it. He put a satellite TV, a sound system and a sunroof back there,” Cohen told CBS. Cohen says it sold for $6,500.
While pawnshop owners certainly don’t have to do this, Cohen told CBS that he’ ll hold their items for 60 days, and will give them a lower interest rate when people share their shutdown story with him.
Make no mistake: This isn’t happening just in Chicago. Furloughed employees (not to mention federal contractors who aren’t necessarily eligible for back pay) all over the country are getting creative to make ends meet. Many furloughed workers are turning to Craigslist to sell items, while others are using the Facebook Marketplace.
There’s something particularly heartbreaking about people selling items that likely have personal meaning, family memories, or quite simply were expensive and valued, just to put food on the table. While Cohen’s decision to hold items is a reassuring one, such decency isn’t guaranteed everywhere. Some people will end up having to part with precious memories to pay the electric bill because Trump is throwing a temper tantrum.
Some schools, as in a district in Virginia, are spreading the word that furloughed workers can apply to be substitute teachers.
Basically, (almost) anything goes. But how, and why, did we get here?
The Coast Guard published a painfully out-of-touch tip sheet for how to survive the shutdown. Along with walking dogs, babysitting, and mystery shopping, the sheet suggested buying things online or having a yard sale. For the record, it also mentioned bankruptcy as a last resort. (The tip sheet has since been taken down.)
How did people find themselves in a position where they’re suddenly walking dogs for pay or pawning their beloved items? First of all, the shutdown came right around the holidays, when people already tend to spend more. Think about how often people travel to visit family or friends, buy presents, or have already booked vacations.
For people who don’t splurge over the holidays (or even for those who do), it’s also important to remember that many people in the United States live paycheck to paycheck. Just how many? Almost 80 percent, reports CareerBuilder. A whopping 10 percent of Americans who make $100,000 a year or more fall into that same bracket, which is a major reminder that the stereotype that it is just low-income people that are “bad” with money is not only disgusting, but also simply false.
The same research shows that just over 70 percent of all workers in the U.S. are living with debt. Fifty-six percent told CareerBuilder they save $100 or less per month.
For people who are low-income, live with disabilities, support family members, or face other socioeconomic barriers, building a safety net strong enough to work without pay for more than 20 days can be unrealistic. Not everyone starts adulthood with a trust fund, much less no debt.
People are terrified about losing their food assistance, including the program designated for women with infants and young children. Many are afraid of losing their housing. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is telling people to offer to do chores for their landlords in exchange for rent.
While initially laughable, flippant comments like these remind Americans just how out of touch Trump and his administration really are. But it’s not just out of touch—it’s cruel.