Fighting world hunger: the enduring impact of Harry Chapin's 'Cat's in the Cradle'

Harry Chapin’s iconic “Cat’s in the Cradle” turns 50 this year. The song — about a father who comes to regret spending too little time with his son — was cowritten by my father and mother, Sandy Chapin, and became a smash hit.

But what makes it historic isn’t its commercial success. It’s the fact that it drove my father to launch a movement to end global hunger and poverty. It’s a movement that now includes many of the world’s most recognized musicians, entertainers, and nonprofit organizations.

The year before the release of “Cat’s in the Cradle,” Harry Chapin met radio DJ Bill Ayres, a fellow Long Islander, and they became best friends. Ayres helped my father realize that his fame and fortune could be an incredible force for good, an opportunity he seized when “Cat’s in the Cradle” topped the charts in December 1974.

He and Ayres founded WhyHunger in 1975, the Center for Food Action in 1976, and Long Island Cares in 1980. They lobbied Congress and President Jimmy Carter to create the Presidential Commission on World Hunger in 1978 to end hunger and poverty in the U.S. and globally. To support his causes, my father performed 100 benefit concerts and raised $1 million yearly from 1975 until his untimely death in 1981 — in an accident on the Long Island Expressway before a benefit concert in Eisenhower Park.

Fortunately, Harry Chapin’s dream didn’t die with his passing. Others stepped in to heed the call. Kenny Rogers, my father’s manager Ken Kragen, and Sandy Chapin kept his charities and movement thriving. Kragen and Harry Belafonte organized “We Are the World” in 1985 and credited my father for inspiring them. Willie Nelson established Farm Aid. Bruce Springsteen, Yoko Ono, Billy Joel, and others became ambassadors and helped lead WhyHunger’s Artists Against Hunger and Poverty. Jon Bon Jovi started JBJ Soul Kitchen. Nationwide nonprofit Feeding America serves as the umbrella organization for 200 U.S. food banks. Share Our Strength and its “No Kid Hungry” campaign champion helping vulnerable children and families.

More recently, the Biden administration held a White House Hunger Conference and launched the Challenge to End Hunger by 2030. The End Hunger Network launched the EndHunger2030 Campaign. Thousands of organizations and hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. provide critical support to 47 million people in the U.S. who are food insecure.

“Cat’s in the Cradle” helped secure my father’s spot in the Grammy Hall of Fame. More importantly, the song is the inextricable link to his eternal legacy as a humanitarian. Harry Chapin wanted to matter and wanted to do something. Through the efforts of those he inspired and who supported his movement, more than two million people who are food insecure in the U.S. and overseas are helped each year.

This month marks the 50th anniversary of the release of “Cat’s in the Cradle.” Wednesday is World Food Day. Let’s embrace Harry Chapin’s philosophy, “When in doubt, do something,” and support the movement he created. Help the organizations working to end hunger and poverty in your community. By joining my father’s movement, we can help end hunger for good.

This guest essay reflects the views of Jason Chapin, son of singer Harry Chapin and a former board member of The Harry Chapin Foundation.