"You are forced to accept charity," he said. "It's demeaning."
Obviously this family was quite demeaned, being forced to accept so much charity. There may be some good however - I'm sure their hosts will be much more reticent to "demean" them, or anyone else in need, in the future.
How about this part:
"Further, Brown said, the family was never provided with money he said the church promised to help them return home."
Freaking ingrates.