Individuals struggling to keep adequate shelter. Some may face challenges of seeking medical attention. Others have no access to jobs or schools. Some parents fail daily in providing food and water for their children. These are just a few sentences that describe poverty. If we closed our eyes and envisioned poverty, we think of children in the second-largest continent, Africa, standing around with no clothes or shoes on. We think of the kids looking mal-nutritious or with other sicknesses and flies flying around their faces but they are too weak to brush them away. We think of people with no education, no skills, or no ideas. These statements are far from facts. I will take you through the ongoing issue of poverty from a macro-level and show you how it can affect case management. Then I will take you through the case management process of trying to end poverty.
On April 19, 2017 my class took part in a Poverty Simulation Experience. Before we started we were informed by Dr. Stephens, our instructor, that this was, “not a game” and to make it as realistic as possible. She also informed us that the goal during the simulated month was to “keep your home secure, make sure your family was fed, pay your bills, and meet unexpected situations.” My alter ego during this simulation was Iris Isma, a single mom with a one-year-old child and live-in boyfriend. Iris was unemployed, but has the desire to go to school. Her only income was food stamps and TANF. Isaiah Isaacson, the boyfriend, was employed and helped out with paying half the housing and Utilities. Iris had a dilemma during this scenario, to either pay the rent or feed her
Everyone knows what the word poverty means. It means poor, unable to buy the necessities to survive in today's world. We do not realize how easy it is for a person to fall into poverty: A lost job, a sudden illness, a death in the family or the endless cycle of being born into poverty and not knowing how to overcome it. There are so many children in poverty and a family's structure can effect the outcome. Most of the people who are at the poverty level need some type of help to overcome the obstacles. There are mane issues that deal with poverty and many things that can be done to stop it.
Peter Edelman provides stark numbers in regard to poverty in his article “Poverty in America: Why Can’t We End It?” Low paying jobs, single parent households, lower occurrences of welfare, and race and gender issues all contribute to poverty in America (Edelman). He is sure to point out that this is not a new problem, but something that America has been having trouble dealing with for many years. One of the shocking numbers he provides is “104 million people - a third of the population - have annual incomes below twice the poverty line” (Edelman). A negative attitude toward those in poverty may prevent people from having empathy for and being charitable toward those less fortunate. However, whether or not the attitude is positive or negative,
Upon arriving to the Poverty simulation, I did not know what to expect. After being able to interact with my peers to understand what it was like to be living in poverty, I got a better understand of what it entails. I quickly wanted to know what the rate of poverty was in Greensboro alone. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, they estimated 268,232 people whose status is poverty in 2013. 29% of that estimate are subjects who are under 18 years old. Out of 268,323, females are about 141,000 of it. The top two races that tend to hold a poverty status are Caucasian and African Americans. The problem at hand is that this status is nationwide.
Understand how to prevent poverty has been a great concern within the United States and across the globe. Many people believe that if you live in poverty you are lazy and you put yourself in that position. Well that is just not the case. Having said that, while I was doing the simulation, I noticed that I had to make difficult decisions that would result in whether or not I would make enough money to pay bills and keep my family intact. I know what it's like to live in poverty. I've experienced what it's like to have no running water or no electricity. When my parents came to the United States in the 90's they had a tough time getting situated in Nashville, Tennessee. When my mother had me and brother, everything seemed to be going well for
Beginning both poverty simulations, I was optimistic that I would be able to manage leisure, work, and family time. That was not the case. In each simulation, I was bombarded with decisions that forced me to make concessions. As part of the international simulation, I learned the importance of time management in regards to poverty. After the domestic simulation, I experienced the immediate effects of each decision I made on my pocketbook and wellbeing.
To begin, professional responsibility is a concept that not only relates to you, but it relates to the society as well. When making decisions businesses have to consider how their decisions affect various communities. This puts business in a dilemma; however, the company’s values should allow them to make the correct decision when faced with these dilemmas.
Taking Poverty 101 class is a way to learn about poverty and what causes it (Beegle 342-343). In the article All Kids Should Take 'Poverty 101,' Beegle explained that in order to help the poor, we first need to be able to sympathize and understand their situations (342). Poverty 101 class will help us to do so because through this class, we will learn the real meaning of poverty, what causes it, and the attitudes that Americans have toward poverty and people who are in it. Moreover, we will get exposed to different types of poverty, such as generational poverty, working-class poverty, immigrant poverty, and situational poverty.
But it is also a challenge for the people actually in need to understand they are living in poverty and need help.(682) When it comes to poverty people tend to have imagery in their mind that comes from all around the world of different people living in deplorable conditions.(683) The problem is poverty like many things is relative. To compare someone in need in the United States on a guideline or scale based on people in need from impoverished countries around the world is not exactly fair.(681) The fact that the United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world also means it’s one of the most expensive places to live. Taking this into consideration it is unreasonable to compare the poor and needy in the United States to the poor and needy in countries where their economic systems are much farther behind than that of the United States.(681) The issue is that just because you’re not in tattered close or homeless does not mean that you are not living in poverty in the United States.(683) What stereotyping like this does is gives a very restricted view of what an individual in poverty looks like, while also causing the help that might be provided to individuals in need to be
There are so ways people express the ways they have had to deal with poverty in society. Also they are endless songs, movies and books expressing about people who have money that take advantage of those who do not. The Horatio Alger book called Ragged Dick deals with the many aspects of inhumanity, greed and the American Dream where it’s believed through hard work, strong ‘ethics, and being respectful a person can achieve a better life for themselves. I believe both of these aspects to be true to those who are in poverty and those who are rich.
This reflection was supposed to address my experience and thoughts about the Poverty Simulation. However, I did not attend due to personal reasons. Instead, I will use this reflection to discuss my thoughts about the UAB CFAR (Center for AIDS Research) Behavioral and Community Sciences Core Seminar.
Usually when a person thinks of the poor and the homeless, they think about those that are living and sleeping on park benches or under bridges. They think of those who are dirty, with ragged clothing, worn out shoes, and those begging or panhandling for food. The truth of the matter is that poverty and homelessness can affect people of any age, race or gender. More Americans are at the risk of poverty and homelessness today. There are many circumstances that can cause a person to live in poverty and become homeless. The lack of affordable housing, low paying jobs or lack of employment, and insufficient federal aid all contribute to poverty and homelessness.
I attended my 1st Poverty Simulation my Junior year and assumed the role of a single mother with a live-in boyfriend. I was randomly assigned my role and only had the background information contained in the folder to guide my character. There were vendors situated around the room that performed different tasks. There was a police man and a thief that added more stressors to the stimulation. The “weeks” were in 15-minute intervals and there was a total of four weeks. During each week, you were required to do numerous tasks such as pay
The 2015 Statistical Analysis Poverty Level Data report shows in the United States, there was an increase in which families’ are able to provide food per person within their household. After the devastating financial and economic crisis in 2008, families have been in financial detriment for years trying to maintain consistency in providing food, support, and shelter. Not until the government 2015 report, there were clear evidence of a sufficient rise in food surplus in low income families since 2008. According to the governmental statistical report, 14% of households were suffering from food deficiency. In other words, 17.5 million households, approximate one out of every seven homes could not provide nourishment on a regular basis. This estimate is down from the last statistical data recorded in 2011 at 14.9%.