The Land of Unequal Opportunity: Poverty in America
In the United States, the disparities between rich and poor have widened considerably. Low-income people are increasingly unlikely to escape their economic situation of poverty. There are few stories of how someone went from “poverty to riches”, and poor families are increasing their annual working hours, if they have a job. Although the United States is the richest country in the world, income inequality is much higher here than in other major countries such as Great Britain, Australia, and Canada (Rand, 2004). Current statistics show that the rich are getting richer, middle-income Americans are stagnating, and the poor are lagging further behind.
Although the United States is thought to be the land of material wealth and success, poverty has persistently existed since its founding. Large numbers of Americans have been and continue to be poor: they lack the resources to eat, dress, and protect themselves adequately according to socially defined standards (Rand, 2004). There are many problems when looking at poverty because it is a problem that permeates all dimensions of culture and society and has different meanings. Social poverty means that some people will be denied the right to a decent education. Political poverty means that innocent people are imprisoned for their skin color and politicians turn a blind eye. Economic poverty means there will be limited employment opportunities for some and inadequate housing.
When people are affected by poverty, they have to choose between paying the bills or buying clothes and school supplies for their children. When people are poor, their living conditions often lack essential elements such as gas, water, and electricity. They cannot make life and death decisions because they lack social and monetary capital. In essence, poverty is the state of life without the economic, political and social resources that are necessary and prerequisites for success in this society. Poverty is impotence, lack of representation and freedom. The only point at which individuals would not be considered affected by poverty is when there is a fundamental change in the distribution of goods and services in American society and everyone is on a more equal playing field. In the United States, poverty can be defined as biological, that is, individuals cannot satisfy biological needs and relative, which describes a person as poor compared to other members of their society (Iceland, 2003).
The Census Bureau measures poverty by using a set of monetary income thresholds that are based on family size and structure. If a family’s income falls below that particular threshold, it is considered poor. These thresholds consist of cash income before taxes, such as earnings from work, public assistance, alimony, child support, social security benefits, and trusts. There has been a lot of criticism about the way the Census Bureau measures poverty because it is considered archaic and miscalculated. The most important aspect used to measure whether a person lives below the poverty line is income. According to the Census Bureau, only cash income is considered in a family’s income, not other types of government assistance, such as food stamps, school lunch programs, and earned income tax credits. A family of four with three children under the age of 18 would be considered poverty-stricken if their total income falls below $ 19,233. In Chicago, the number of people living below the poverty line dropped by six percent, but this does not mean that fewer people are living in poverty. More than half of Chicago’s neighborhood poverty rates have risen.
My definition of poverty is quite different from the one used by the Census Bureau and OMB because I measured not only economic resources, but also political and social ones. The census and OMB only measure cash income. The definition used by the Census and OMB does not allow for constructs such as social and political deprivation. Individuals who use this definition obviously do not understand that being impoverished is more than lacking money. Poverty is a state of mind that makes people fall behind academically, more likely to commit criminal acts, and lose hope. Poverty not only decimates the pockets, but also the spirit. There are several ways in which poverty can be conceptualized and operated. In 2002, the Census Bureau compared a set of alternative measures designed by the National Academy of Sciences with its own official measure. However, the findings were mixed. Under a set of alternative measures that added non-monetary benefits, the poverty rate increased. That is why the Census Bureau uses your official measure. The United States wants to pretend that poverty does not exist, and if it does exist, only a few are actually affected, usually people of color.
The existence of poverty in America is a complex situation and so are the solutions necessary to correct it. Huge campaign contributions from large corporations and wealthy individuals dominate politics, economics, and social policies in this country. The needs of the poor are not on the agenda of these people. Because of those in power, there are conservative government policies that undermine aid to the disadvantaged and line the pockets of the privileged. The various debates about whether the official measure of poverty is correct are stupid and do not change this fact: the United States has forgotten a certain segment of people based on their economic origin.
Some have argued that the rate of economic growth has been insufficient to eliminate poverty, while others argue that the cause is due to unequal income distribution. Some consider that the poor lack the skills or the will to escape their condition; others see the economy as dependent on the poor to provide a low-wage workforce for various industries. This lack of agreement has long been characteristic of public disagreement on poverty. As long as American society is in conflict between the classes, poverty will continue to exist and will add to the many other social problems that exist today.