Case 3.3 Poverty In America

Poverty is a multifaceted issue, it is dependent on many factors and the ‘one size fits all’ approach does not work. Out of all the possible explanations as to why people are still living in poverty in the U.S., the structural view of poverty covers the most bases. The structural view of poverty explains that poverty can only ‘be understood and explained only with reference to political and economic characteristics of the society’ (Kerbo, p.266). With this in mind, this theory considers the position of the poor in the occupational structure. Since the poor have jobs that require low skill, which means anyone can learn how to do them, there is much more competition for such jobs. Those with jobs that require greater skills, such as doctors,

staggering? Poverty occurs when a person’s need for food, clothing and shelter are not being

We create this society in which every individual starts off at different points in life due to these social categories based on race and ethnicity, which in turn affects education, social class and our overall lifestyle. After we create these categories and put people there unwillingly, we act as though it is there fault and not ours, so our society is reluctant to help; in this way it would be a “helping hand” rather than a dependency people often associate it with. “Education is a significant factor in poverty” (Wong, Chapter 6); like stated above, different individuals get different starting points in life, therefore affecting where one ends up in life. “A national survey conducted in 1975, found that those living in poverty attributed it to personal failures, such as having a poor work ethic, poor money management skills and low personal moral values” (Martin

Poverty has been an ongoing issue since the birth of this Nation. When one thinks of poverty the last people we think of are the ones closest to home. As children some are told “finish your dinner, there are starving kids in Africa”, but what about the starving children whom are in neighborhoods close to us? Poverty is everywhere, even the places that are thought of as wealthy. Poverty in America; a continuing issue.There are many different definitions of poverty. The United States Census Bureau states that

When considering poverty, most would focus on monetary values and claim that a way to fix poverty is to generate more money. Sarah Burd-Sharps and Kristen Lewis, co-directors of Measure of America, strive to get people talking about other factors of poverty rather than just income. If Burd-Sharps and Lewis are right that opportunity inequality is a big problem, as I think they are, then we need to reassess the popular assumption that money is the cause of poverty. . Inequalities in health, environment, education, and wealth are creating disadvantages for younger generations that can limit success.

The issue of poverty in the United States seems to lie on the grounds of race education and family structure. As expected I found that educational levels paralleled poverty levels. Unexpected , research was found to prove that race did in fact play a substantial role in poverty. Family structure along with other influential factors either locked an individual into poverty or provided a means for escape from the continuing cycle. Other factors contributing to poverty was the location of homes or neighborhoods and the accessibility to better paying jobs.

There may be some blacks or minorities who remain poor because of their personal characteristics, but the majority of poor blacks are not different from others in motivations and aspirations. In fact, many poor people work incredibly hard at low paying jobs in order to barely get by. The most important causes of poverty lie in the power relations of society, and not the cultural characteristics of the poor individuals. The experiences of poverty have an impact on an individual's disposition and psychological state. Poverty could cause an individual to behave in particular ways, but the main difference between the poor and the rest of society is the opportunities and circumstances the individual’s encounter. It is not their personalities, attributes or values. Blacks continue to be discriminated against in employment and housing, which only contributes to poverty. The majority of African Americans are not poor because they choose not to work, but are poor because of the continuous discrimination from the dominant white race. Poor black Americans should face the same political, economic, and housing conditions as poor white Americans, but this is not the case. Because of continuing discrimination, poor black families do not live in integrated neighborhoods with comparable white families. In addition,

No matter the level of determination, it can be much harder for those who were raised in public housing that attend a very poor school to get a job that pays as much as those who were raised in a comfortable home and the ability to attend private school. Though there are many success stories, there are just as many tragic stories where many have to scrape by with a minimum wage job and there is no way that they are able to increase their wealth and the rich remain on top and the poor remain on the bottom. This problem creates a strong bond between income inequality and poverty. Those who do not have the chance to get off of their feet and actually receive a reasonable income, in many cases, can become discouraged and fall into the percentage of poverty stricken Americans.

In an article written by Angus Deaton, he discusses the issues behind poverty and why it is persistent in the United States. In the beginning of his article, he presents data from the World Bank which states that 3.2 million out of 769 million of the world's poorest people are living in the United States and are living off of less than $1.90 a day as of 2013 (Deaton). Some of the arguments he mentions that may contribute to the United States high poverty rate include where our poverty line is set, the quality of our necessities, and our government aid.

Many reforms in the UnitedStates have been passed to help fight against the “War on Poverty”; but it has not been effective in eradicating poverty in the U.S. There are about 46 million people who are living in impoverished conditions and poverty continues to be a social issue in this country (Heritage Foundation, 2011) In the beginning, our country was formed under the belief that “this land is the land of opportunity and if we worked hard enough the American Dream can be gained” (Schwarz, 1997). People immigrate to this country today in hopes of becoming rich so they could gain a better life. In spite of coming to this country for a better life, many are faced with the lack of skills and money to succeed. In the end, most will end

The United States defines poverty for a family of four as being less than $16,036 per year, or $4,009 per person (Leone 12). People find themselves under this line for an innumerable amount of reasons. Some of these causes are under one's control and others are greater factors beyond an individual's power. Each family or individual person has unique and separate reasons for living in a state poverty. There is no way to try and define them all. Focusing in, three main topics arise that encompass the most predominant reasons for a person to fall into poverty. Education, family life and influence, along with the business cycle may work individually or together to cause poverty. These three leading

It is reported that 18.5 million people are in deep poverty, which means the income of a family is under 50% of their 2016 poverty threshold. It is often said that the efforts to fight Poverty in America has failed. According to surveys, 5% of Americans think that anti-poverty programs have helped decreased poverty, while 47% have said the programs have done nothing. However, in 2014, the U.S census bureau reported that poverty was decreased by 15%.The official poverty rate right now is 12.7%. 8 years after the great recession, the poor families of america begun to emerge from poverty. With the increase of jobs and more safety, poor families were able to climb out of poverty. Census data released today has shown that living in poverty were able to return to pre-recession levels, with poverty declining for all ethnic groups. However, poverty still isn’t disappearing from America. 40.6 million Americans are still living in poverty last year. Historically America has always had a very high poverty rate. It was first rated in 1959 to be 22.4% of people were in poverty. Which is a lot. The poverty rate has been fluctuated throughout the years. In 1973 the poverty rate has decreased to 11.1%, then has increased and decreased to 11 to 15 percent throughout the

Poverty is a huge factor in the world and in our society. There are several steps we could do to try to possibly reduce the percentage of people living in poverty in the U.S. This is a huge problem in our economy and how it affects people that work for their money. Poverty in America is a news topic that is often overlooked. The demographics that are hardest hit are children, the elderly, and the unemployed. ("US Poverty Level By State.")

an action can't be right if the people who are made happy by it are outnumbered by the people who are made unhappy by it.

Ethical standards in business can be divided up into three levels. These levels are law, policies, and individuals. In the United States, we are bound by laws. With these laws, we distinguish right and wrong, and what is accepted by the majority of citizens in terms of behavior. Businesses have to abide to these laws at all time. There are laws on wages and hours to protect employees, but there are laws on environmental responsibility too. For a business to be considered ethical, at first, they should always follow the law. The law however, does not always guarantee ethical conduct as there is a thin line between legal and ethical. A business might act legally but unethical at the same time. In this case, the business must see to that themselves if this is ethical or not.