Local leaders and community activists held community picnic and resource fair to address how billionaires got a break and everyday Americans got the bill.
WARREN, Mich (July 6, 2026) – Today Families Over Billionaires joined local partners to host a community picnic and resource fair in Warren as part of the Who Pays? Bus Tour. Warren residents came together to eat, pick up clothing and get help from one another, while leaders shared stories about the real-world consequences of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA).
The law cut Medicaid and SNAP to deliver $4.5 trillion in tax cuts to billionaires. Since the OBBBA was enacted one year ago, nearly 121,000 Michiganders, including 12,000 people in Macomb County, have lost their SNAP benefits. More than 78,000 Michiganders, including 7000 people in Macomb County, have lost their Medicaid benefits.
Multiple partners on the ground came together to make the event a success, including: Forgotten Harvest, MI League for Public Policy, MI League of Conservation Voters, MI Families for Fair Care, MI Education Justice Coalition, Macomb Defenders Rising (Indivisible), Feeding Michigan, FRE (Fraser, Roseville, Eastpointe) Democrats, Turning Point, Samaritas Refugee Youth Services, Macomb County Health Department and Macomb Food Program.
Warren was the sixth stop on the 17-stop nationwide Who Pays? Bus tour, which started in Portland, ME on June 30th. The tour will hit 13 states before ending on July 16th in Tucson, Arizona. At every stop, local voices and leaders tell the story behind the headlines. Learn more here.
Media who would like video or photos from the event, or an interview with one of the speakers please email [email protected].
HIGHLIGHTS
Kristen Crowell, Executive Director of Families Over Billionaires: “The concept of Families Over Billionaires going out all over the country on this bus tour actually started right here in Warren, Michigan. It was April of last year we held one of the first town halls in the country to tell each other what was actually happening and to start to demand that our elected representatives in Congress listen to us.”
Julie Cassidy, Senior Policy Analyst, Michigan League for Public Policy: “Since HR one was signed into law, nearly 121,000 Michiganders have lost their SNAP benefits here in Macomb County. It’s more than 12,000 people, 38% of whom are children. More than 78,000 Michiganders have lost their Medicaid benefits, and here in Macomb County, it’s more than 7000 and the losses are only beginning. We expect them to grow as the various provisions of HR one are phased in over the next couple of years.”
Dr. Chris Crader, a palliative care physician in southeast Michigan, Committee to Protect Our Care: “Behind every statistic is a patient, a family, a caregiver. People deserve to spend their end of life focused on time with loved ones, not worrying about whether they’ll be able to receive or afford that care. Health care should reflect our values. It should protect people when they’re at their most vulnerable. It should put people before billionaires.
Steph Rubel, head of Feeding Michigan food pantry: “We have seniors starving, we have babies who need education, we have so many needs in our community with healthcare. …If we don’t stay together, we will fall apart as a country. My grandma had a saying she used to say to me all the time: when you serve others, love is always present. So reach out to your neighbors, reach out to your community.”
Murryum Farooqi, an organizer with Fund MI Future: “We love taxes because they create awesome public services and community, and give back to people. And we really love it when wealthy individuals and corporations actually pay what they owe.”
Kristen Crowell closed out the speaking program with: “We will not let our neighbors suffer and die, and if Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress continue to throw our communities under the bus, we will pick each other back up, we will provide food, we will provide mutual aid, we will provide love and care and compassion and hope, because never again ever will we allow politicians in Washington DC to hijack our politics and screw over our families.”
Who Pays? bus tour national partners include: Gen Z For Change, Protect Our Care, National Women’s Law Center, Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, DemCast USA, National Nurses United, Unrig Our Economy, Americans for Tax Fairness, and State Revenue Alliance.
