Poverty in America - Free Essay Example

Poverty in America, a way of life for many, Including children and adults of all ages, races, and genders, But how do people live in poverty? A simple answer really, they do not. Many who live in poverty are living in a state of constant struggle, a state of hunger and in need of assistance, that is often not provided to the extent that is should be. Many people who live in poverty do not get enough food that one needs to survive, this leads to a high mortality rate in the areas where poverty is prominent. In these areas it is also a lot harder for kids to get good education that will benefit them in life, since schools are run by tax money, schools in areas with higher poverty rates do not have the same opportunities as students in the higher classes. It is also much harder for people who live in poverty to get a stable job, this leads to a low income which especially makes it a lot harder for families trying to get by. Few educational options, a high mortality rate, and low incomes cause poverty to be a difficult obstacle to overcome. Background Research In 1957 about one-fifth of the children in the United States were in families that had low incomes.(Epstein 12). That means that approximately 14.84 million children live in poverty in the United States. 14.84 million children who have to fight daily to eat a proper meal and to get a proper education. Many of these children experience delays later on in life and education, Poor children suffer from emotional and behavioral problems m ore frequently than do non poor children. (Brooks-Gunn and Duncan 62). These types of problems lead to much greater hardships in ones life, growing up in poverty can also affect ones psychological health, and it is known to cause short term spatial memory. How does poverty affect ones educational life? Poverty can lead to a child bullying others or getting bullied themselves. According to Patrice Engle and Maureen Black, Several macro-level interventions to examine the effects of reducing poverty on childrens academic achievement have been evaluated. Initial findings from income supplementation and residential relocation programs appeared promising. There are certain things that may be able to semi-fix the situation such as the experiment where there taking kids from certain parts of the town and sending them to seperate schools, so kids from all over one county could be in the same school, the only problem with that is that still some schools will be funded less than others and some kids will still not have the best education they should be able to get. When a child goes to a not so good school, it makes it harder for them to get into a good college, so they my end up having to go to a community college when they wanted to go somewhere entirely different. Why is there such a high mortality rate for those who live in poverty? According to Lenore Epstein author of Some Effects of Low Income on Children and Their Families, The National health survey, like previous surveys, found that the amount of medical care received by a family was related to the families income. The frequency of visits to the dentist not only a measure of the amount of dental care received but an index of ability to obtain preventive health care in general. this meaning that many families who live in poverty can not obtain things such as healthcare and can not go to the doctor when they want or need to, or the hospital as much as they would like too, so if a family member gets sick a lot of the time they can not afford to take that family member to the hospital to get treated. Some things that could easily be treated can make a person who lives in poverty die, but when things get harder, such as a person getting diagnosed with cancer is when it can get even tougher for a family who lives in poverty. There is also many people who live in poverty that face malnutri tion everyday, this malnutrition can lead too many deaths and it is especially prominent in areas that have a lot of poverty in them. For children, this can be especially hard, seeing as children need to stay nourished throughout their childhood or they may experience growing difficulties, especially toddlers and younger kids. Malnourished children also experience many other difficulties later on in their lives and as Ana Sawaya states in Malnutrition: long-term consequences and nutritional recovery effects If you are left malnourished growing up and you get pregnant, you may experience insufficient weight gain which can affect your safety as well as the baby you are carrying, if you continue to stay malnourished while pregnant your baby will end up being born underweight and malnourished. How do low incomes affect those who live in poverty? People can work and still be poor for two reasons. First, they may not work the entire year due to loss of job, the part-time nature of their job or illness or disability. Second, even full time workers may not earn enough to keep a family, particularly a large family, out of poverty.(Duncan 15). There has always been the argument that if people just got a job they would not live in poverty anymore, that is not the case, many people have jobs and still are not able to make a living, many people also have disabilities and are physically not able to get a job that they can work at full time. Contrary to popular belief, people who live in poverty are not living in poverty because they are lazy, but rather it is hard to find a job that they are able to work at and make enough to live off of. It is especially hard if these people do not have a college degree or high school diploma, seeing as for many jobs that is one of the main require ments, So many people who live in poverty are not able to get financially stable jobs. The United States also spends much more money buying things such as cosmetics, when they could be spending it to help the people who live in poverty. The United States spends 8 billion dollars on cosmetics alone (Anup Shah).