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Definition Of Poverty

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INTRODUCTION:
Growing up in an upper-middle class home in Canada, one might assume that my perspective on the definition of poverty would be very superficial and disconnected with reality such as poverty being the inability to afford opulence. However, being born in and raised with extended family living in harrowing conditions in third-world Pakistan has provided me a very unique perspective on what it means to be “poor”. Poverty to me, is boiling water before bathing for the fear of ailment. Poverty is the heart clenching dread of bills, the darkness of a blackout, the cries of family over minimal inheritance. Poverty is a mother in drags clenching to her naked newborn on the street and children begging for a half-eaten cone of ice cream. Poverty to me is frightening and life threatening.

My definition of poverty, though severe, is an accumulation of my experiences. Unsurprisingly, in a first world country such as Canada, the definition of poverty is dissimilar to my own. Poverty, as described by the Canadian government in a report titled “Poverty in Canada” can be measured by three factors: low income cut-offs, market basket measure, and low income measure. A family in Canada is placed in the low income bracket according to the low income cut-off; if they invest 20% more of their income than the average Canadian family on necessities including shelter, food, and clothing. Market basket measure indicates a family's ability to purchase a set of goods and services, which

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