AJ Wark, a third-year maritime studies student at Texas A&M University at Galveston, started the fall semester on food stamps. In May, her parents kicked her out of their home after she came out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, taking away her car and money that helped pay for textbooks and other essentials.

But now that her food stamp account sits empty, the 21-year-old has yet another expense to worry about — how to pay for her next meal.

“There are these social safety nets that are supposed to be in place to help stay stable, but now we’re seeing them taken away,” Wark said. “I never thought this would happen.”

Wark is among 3.5 million Texans — including 1.7 million children — on the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program, also known as SNAP, who have become political col

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