Americorps Reflection

Jorge is a 67 year old Hispanic male and is recently widowed. He was born and raised in Mexico City before immigrating to the United States when he was in his early twenties. He worked as a factory line assembler in Chicago, Illinois for his entire adult life and earned his citizenship through The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986. He is a practicing Catholic and attended Spanish speaking services regularly up until the recent loss of his wife. Jorge now lives alone, and depends on his Social Security Income (SSI) and Medicare to maintain affordable senior housing in an independent living facility. His grown children live out of state and provide some emotional and financial support. He was referred to our agency after a well-being check by a concerned neighbor.

Poverty. Unemployment. Potential foreclosure. Words all too familiar to Americans everywhere. The PBS Frontline documentary, Two American Families, is the heartbreaking, yet hopeful look at the struggles of two Milwaukee families, the Neumanns and the Stanleys, over roughly two decades, 1991 to 2012. While ideally the concept of meritocracy would indicate the efforts of these hard working families should influence their social standing, the reality of social stratification remains, with their wealth, power, and prestige, or lack thereof, used to cement their place, and primarily that of their children, in society.

When Dr. Hector P. Garcia returned from service in World War II he was eager to peruse the American Dream. What he encountered was deep rooted prejudices and resolved to overcome these injustices. Dr. Garcia observed that as Hispanics many of his fellow veterans had difficulties receiving the educational, monetary, and medical benefits that they were entitled to. He embraced the values that our country was founded on and worked tirelessly to break down the social barriers he encountered and to ensure that all veterans received equal benefits and care regardless of ethnicity. On March 26, 1948 Dr. Garcia was joined by 700 of his fellow veterans to found the American GI Forum.

Among the many tasks this charity is proud to address, they have been consistent about their policy on welcoming "newcomers" as they say, referring to people coming from abroad to the United States, searching for a better quality of life and more opportunities to thrive. Many newcomers struggle to establish themselves in a nation that is ambivalent about their presence, particularly those who are not authorized to reside in our country. Cultural and linguistic

This shows the economic state of Asian Americans and the support they actually need. According to report by Farah Z. Ahmed for the Center for American Progress last year, Ahmed shares that Asian Americans are actually one of the fastest-growing populations in poverty since the Great Recession that hit in 2011. In fact, 29.3 percent of Cambodians and 37.8 percent of Hmong live in poverty (Poon, 2016). In addition, Tang Director of Aging and Adult Services at Counseling and Referral Service shares that “A lot of time we Asian Americans suffer from being generalized as one group.. Pointing out that the umbrella term “Asian American” really encompasses 48 language groups.. The general public perceives [Asian as] high education, high achievement, model minority, therefore they do not have issues of poverty and homelessness.” Tang further studies the issue of how Asian Americans have the highest senior poverty rate and the affects it has on generations. However in the other hand, CNBC’s

“Taxpayers should provide support to those in need; recipients, in return, should engage in responsible and constructive behavior as a condition of receiving aid.” (Robert Rector 2)

Growing up in a disadvantaged part of Washington, D.C. during the 90’s wasn’t always easy. At the time, D.C. was plagued by crime, violence, and poverty, and as a child/teen I often found myself confronted by these harsh realities. Now, as an adult, I actively seek out opportunities to work in underserved and disadvantaged communities because I understand how difficult life can be for those belonging to such communities. I have proudly served in a number of underserved and disadvantaged communities, including rural Guatemala and Flint, Michigan and it is my hope to continue to do

Due to this factor, many immigrant families seek services available in the U.S.The following articles addresses Immigration Policy and Federal Policy. It also addresses social services that are available to immigrant families and how social workers jobs are designed to help this individuals. Within the article, it addresses the different services needed by these individuals, such as mental health, health care, and living assistance.

This paper discusses the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program that was established in 1996. It examines the development and goals of the policy as well as addresses the target population that benefits from this program. A review of the agencies associated with TANF and the benefits the program provides to its clients is also given. In addition, the funding sources of TANF are addressed. Lastly, it examines the social issue this program is meant to address.

In 2013, I had the opportunity to assist local public school administrators on the issue of illiteracy and the allocation of resources in inner-city schools. Additionally, I collaborated on a small team to implement plans to provide public housing for the homeless in Orange County, CA. During this time, I also had the opportunity to be a nanny for five kids who were formerly homeless. I was able to be a part of their transition from street life to home life and witness the effects of poverty

According to Volunteers of America, over 670,000 Americans are homeless, 48 million people go hungry every night, and 46.2 million Americans live in poverty. In 2013, Volunteers of America helped hover 83,000 homeless individuals. This organization works to prevent and end homelessness through a range of support services including eviction prevention, emergency services, transitional housing and permanent affordable housing. By doing so they engage homeless individuals, including youth and families with children, and stay with them for as long as it takes to return them to self-sufficiency. This organization reach out to homeless individuals through street outreach and mobile outreach services and engage with homeless individuals, youth and families with children. Moreover, they provide assistance that ranges from paying a first month’s rent to offering permanent supportive housing so that people with disabilities can become stable and productive members of their communities.

Although most American citizens do not typically notice government programs in their daily lives, implemented policies have major effects on American citizens. It is estimated that around 1.35 million children suffer from homelessness due to their families living on the streets (Crook). With this massive housing conundrum, the United States government should increase funding for the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Increased funding would decrease homelessness by lowering the crime rate, educating students, and improving American living conditions.

Whether legal or illegal, when migrating from their homeland, regardless of their individual circumstances, immigrants face a number of challenges en route to, and upon arrival into the United States. It is common knowledge that immigrants face language barriers, basic cultural differences, emotional isolation, prejudice and discrimination upon their arrival into the United States. Dr. Jean Rhodes points out that due to their exclusion from public services, [undocumented] immigrants typically settle in areas of deep poverty plagued with inadequate services in addition to substandard living conditions and schools (2005). However, the most difficult and detrimental issue they face is their access to receiving public health care. In his 2003 article in the American Journal of Public Health, Jeffrey Kullgren points out that many of the undocumented immigrants in

(Rogers 407) Since 2012 more African Americans are attending college to work toward a higher education to at least help them out of poverty. There is also an increase in older college students in their late thirties to fifties that also returned to school for a higher education. (Ebony Magazine, 2012. Women of African American seem to have a much harder time, than other race of people, in poverty and are even harder for them in older age. “The term triple jeopardy has been used to describe “female ethnic-minority elderly.” Members of this particular group face discrimination in three ways-being a women, elderly, and a member of an ethnic minority group-putting them even more at risk for poverty than other adults”.(Rogers 407). People who live in poverty often have other problems such as stress, prolonged illness and disability, reduced access to health care, poor living conditions and malnutrition problems. The formal support system for African Americans who experience living in poverty can get help from: Tax Credits (Snap), subsidies programs – Section 8 program, Habitat for Humanity’s and free school lunches for children. The problem with some of these programs is that many people do not qualify for these services even as they struggle with poverty. Some ways of helping themselves is to help at home and lower the electric and gas bills by turning off lights when not needed. When taking shorter baths,

AmeriCorps is a good program to be in. It trains you on how to help people with different health and mental issues. The program is based upon a non-profit organization. They can participate in many charitable events to raise fund for the less fortunate. Therefore it’s a good program to have on your side as you can see the program is worldwide and it is bigger and they are standing strong. They are in the process of developing an alumni group to allow former participate to maintain active.. As a true volunteer, this is an opportunity to volunteer as an UAB AmeriCorps alumni in an organized fashion. An alumni needs to be open minded, flexible, able to participate in at least one annual project, as well as others if they so