Lawmakers push to end ‘lunch-shaming' at schools

Michael Padilla's childhood was spent bouncing between homeless shelters and foster homes. And it didn't get much better in school.

As a young boy, he did chores in the cafeteria -- setting up tables, then wiping them down, and mopping the floor after his classmates. For his work, he'd get a piece of bread, a slice of cheese and, when there was extra, an apple.

"It was a tough time growing up," Padilla said.

He's now a state senator, and the driving force behind New Mexico's first-in-the-nation law to ban such practices. Known broadly as "lunch shaming," such policies still allow schools in other states to single out children as young as 4 who are unable to come up with money for hot school meals.

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