Working and Still Poor. Sekia Dalton. Zane State College

Transcription

1 Running head: WORKING AND STILL POOR 1 Working and Still Poor Sekia Dalton Zane State College

2 2 Working and Still Poor Why is it that we the people of America work hard and are still poor? One can see that America is the land of the free, yet we do suffer from great links of poverty. Poverty is a major problem here in America and it goes beyond welfare reform. If we are right about how poverty is on the rise here in America, then major consequences follow for the working poor. These problems are related to the decline of high paying jobs, the cycle of debt that can occur, and the difficulties families and individuals face when working in poverty. According to Cynthia Duncan (1999), economists attribute growing inequality nationwide to declining employment in the goods-producing sector (p. 188). Jobs are being lost making the working poor even more poor here in America. In Duncan s view the poor, discouraged by their own failures, do not teach their children the values they need to succeed (p. 188). Duncan is obviously mistaken because she overlooks the fact that jobs are being lost. It is simply not true that the working poor do not teach their children (Duncan, 1999, p. 188). Anybody familiar with poverty should agree that everybody wants his/her children to do better than he/she has done. American jobs are being moved overseas giving Americans very little limited resources to income. Duncan s (1999) theory that nearly a third of all rural Americans live in poverty is extremely useful because it sheds insight of the difficult problem of poverty (p. 201). Duncan (1999) emphasizes that minorities are especially hurt, in part because racism and segregation over the years have ensured that minorities are more likely to have few skills and low educational attainment (p. 188). It will take time to reverse this trend. Indeed, it is clear to see much of America is working below poverty levels. Howard Karger (2005) himself writes, Almost one in four American workers lives in poverty or close to it (p. 21). Basically, Karger is saying employers are underpaying their workers. Therefore,

3 3 Americans are turning to the credit card industry. Karger (2005) reports, The average American credit card holder has almost seven cards (p. 44). Credit cards are the quick and easy way to pay for what one wants or needs. So, when looking at the facts, it is evident that Americans are spending more than they make. With all that in mind, Karger (2005) acknowledges that the number of older Americans filing for bankruptcy has tripled, making them the fastest-growing age group in bankruptcy courts (p. 45). Karger is right in that senior citizens and young college students have high credit card debt. Furthermore, the problem is exacerbated when those who are struggling have an even more difficult time paying back the debt that accrues. For example, there is no argument that pawnshops are traditionally located in low-income minority neighborhoods (Karger, p. 67). Pawnshops allow the poor to borrow money against their property. Karger (2005) states, We all need cash at one time or another (p. 66). Pawnshops are a way people can get money without going into debt. An interesting fact is when African Americans were refused loans, pawnbrokers crossed the color line and lent money to any customer willing to pay the interest rate (p. 66). Pawnshops were the start of a debt chain of more debt. People had to borrow to pay for their property before it went up for sell. Next came the payday loans. Whereas pawnshops do not require a bank account, the payday loan does (Karger, 2005, p. 72). As an illustration Karger (2005) states, Where pawnshops lend to the poorest of the poor, payday lenders serve those one rung up on the economic ladder or better known as the working poor (p. 72). Payday loans are very difficult to escape. Several people live from paycheck to paycheck just so they can pay back their loans. The interest rates on the loans are extremely high. These problems are difficult for individuals, but impact families as well. Another good piece of evidence is child poverty is on the rise, especially for single families. Research

4 4 demonstrates that single people with children are more likely to be living in poverty (Duncan, p. 201). Making a stronger example is the life of a woman I interviewed. Betty Nettle, a young single black woman, works everyday to try and make a living for her family. Norris states, I work every day just to pay for health insurance, and still cannot afford insurance for my young children. Nettle falls through the cracks of where the poverty line falls. It is sad she makes just fifty dollars too much a month to be entitled to any kind of help. The welfare reform system changed all their guidelines, which make it very difficult for the working poor like Nettle to get any help. Nettle admits she lives her life in poverty. Nettle explains, I want a better life for my children than I had for myself; I hope they make something worthwhile with their life (n.p.). Nettle is one of many women who want a better life for her children. Adding to that, several Americans who work hard every day are still poor and living in poverty. In his book, The Working Poor, Shipler (2005) maintains that nobody who works hard should be poor in America (p. ix). In other words, Shipler believes that if American people work every day, then they should not have to deal with living in poverty. Shipler himself writes the people here in America know no ethnic or racial boundaries (p. xi). Shipler s point is that poverty is a major issue; it is not only of one race, nor is poverty of only one ethnic group. When it comes to the topic of the working poor and poverty, most will readily agree that it is of great concern here in America. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of who is to blame. Whereas some are convinced that the government is at fault, others maintain that the poor are. The evidence clearly points that many citizens suffer from great poverty levels, and the working poor feel these effects even while they seek to advance out of

5 5 those circumstances with a job. American people are working for America, but America does not seem to be working for the poor.

6 6 References Duncan, C. (1999). Worlds apart: Why poverty persists in rural America. New Haven: Yale University Press. Karger, H. (2005). Short changed: Life and debt in the fringe economy. San Francisco: Berrett-Doehler Publishers, Inc. Shipler, D. K. (2004). The working poor: Invisible in America. New York: Random House, Inc.