Low Income Family: Community Analysis

This can start to override the stigma often associated with low-income housing and even serving as a point of pride for those who live there” (Marin).

Living in a household of ten members was really tough. I can remember going to the store and not being able to buy anything I wanted. We barely had enough money to buy something for us to eat. It was hard for me to understand why my parents always said no to me when I asked for a candy, but later on, I realized my parents were struggling to get food on our table. Sometimes I would go hungry to bed, worried about what we would eat the next day. Living a childhood in poverty has made me realize that the little I had was enough for me to be happy and to appreciate what little we had because my mom always told me “there are other people who have less than we do”.

* Environment: The environment that initially shapes our development is our home. As we mature, the locations in which we interact will shape our development.

Poverty rates dropped to the lowest it had ever been in the United States. What used to be the poverty rate of 17.3% in 1958 had significantly dropped to 11.1% in 1965 after the initiation of Lyndon B. Johnson’s “war on poverty” acts and programs (Boundless). The programs that Johnson had implemented caused the standard of living to rise in the areas of impoverished US citizens. Elderly people as well as low-income families could now afford healthcare. Children were given access to education through the government funding of public schools, which paved the way for more students to be able to move on to higher educations. School funding and volunteer programs were put in place to combat the low literacy rates in underprivileged areas, and training programs were made available to help those who were unemployed gain skills and knowledge that would help them secure jobs. Families with low incomes were now able to afford housing with government funds being allocated to build houses in the low-income areas. Even the goods that were being bought had increased in quality because of acts that raised the standard of production of consumer goods (ushistory.org). Although the Johnson administration had very strong critics of the “war on poverty” their actions generated lasting impacts on the society that is seen

Men who were once prominent, upstanding citizens with jobs were now reduced to standing in line for a soup kitchen all while watching their family suffer. This led many men to lose all hope and turn to alcohol or even abandoning their family. Women were home trying to keep the household together. They canned food and sewed clothing, trying to make every penny count. Many even worked outside of the home for low, low wages. Children were sometimes forced to work as well. Any income for a family was helpful and many schools were closed due to lack of federal funds. Many families exhibited symptoms of malnutrition and other diseases due to poor nutrition. People could no longer afford health care or things like milk that helped keep them healthy. At this time there was no federal system for direct relief.

From a very young age, I contended with countless setbacks, but the vitality placed on our income at home was the leading factor to my family’s problems. I remember when my parents chose to buy me a new pair of running shoes over paying the electricity bill or when they stayed up all night making tamales to sell so they could afford to pay for medical bills. There never went a month without my parents constantly arguing over the monthly rent or not having enough to buy groceries for the family. I grew up with five siblings in addition to two cousins who were sent from Mexico by their parents and placed under the legal guardianship of my parents. Naturally, learning to adapt to unfortunate circumstances was not rare and I quickly understood

Child abuse is defined as ways of treating a child that are harmful or morally wrong. (Richards 12) Child abuse is caused by so many things and usually starts with something de-menial or small. Like a snowball, the problem gets bigger as time goes on, if you do not stop it. Child abuse happens everywhere, in every neighborhood, ethnicity/racial, and religion. It is worldwide. One of the main factors of child abuse is where they live. Do they live in poverty or not? Poverty is such a broad term; when most people think of poverty, they think of the kids they see on TV. These children are usually from a third world country where there are programs set up to help feed the starving. Poverty is defined by Charles Booth, in 1886, as “very

“I live in a semi-rural community in Delaware,” she explained. “Living in a small community, there isn’t a lot of separation between the rich and poor. That experience has taught me how important it is to give back and what it means to the community when you do. You can physically see the need more, and you can see the difference your contributions

While Richard’s family was unethical in the way they exposed him to religion, their actions truly reflect the hardships that are associated with a poor African American family during their time. Throughout his childhood, Richard is constantly exposed to religion in unethical ways by his family. His mother and grandmother pressure him into believing in God by making him feel guilty and useless if he didn’t do so. On one such occasion, his mother pressures him into being baptized.

In order to further support low-income communities and improve this population’s health the federal government needs to not only continue with the supplemental food programs they’ve already put in place, but enhance them by considering the barriers and address them. The government can intervene by integrating other components to the programs that further support people and help eliminate the main barrier by providing them direct access to grocery stores and healthier options. In order for government resources to be more effective in areas where there are limited grocery store options in the community, the government could begin by providing transportation services in areas where grocery stores are limited or if any at all. Providing transportation to those who are receiving government resources like WIC and SNAP would allow families to exhaust

According to the PRB article “U.S. Low-Income Working Families Increasing”, 42.7% of people live below the poverty line, with 32.1% of them living 200% below the poverty line; this group is categorized as the low-income group.(PRB) 59% of low income working families have one or more minority parents. Living in a low-income community limits one’s standard of living through academic gaps, the selection of food available, an ever-present fear of victimization , and a lack of resources available to both children and adults.

In the United States, one is constantly hearing of the “struggle low-income communities face.” While it is often alluded to on large scale news channels, such as Fox and CNN, and is spoken of on daily talk shows, not very many people often take the time to discuss what the problem with these low income communities actually is.

My mother, older sister, foster sister and I settled in Temecula on December 17, 1997, when I was five years old. My mom was a single parent but wanted to give my sisters and I a better life from where we lived in Oceanside where there various gangs and negative influences. Temecula was a growing community and my mom felt it would be a perfect place to raise us. When we moved into our home there was only a two lane highway leading to the 15 freeway, a fruit stand along with a Lucky’s, Stater Brothers grocery stores, Rite-Aid, two fast food restaurants. We had to drive about three cities north to shop at Walmart and now we have a Super Center Walmart across the

More middle class and minority families than ever are now underwater in their mortgages, and have zero to negative wealth after the Great Recession that followed the 2000 housing boom (Potts 7). Even those who kept their homes saw their values drop due to the declined neighborhood worth. My childhood home’s peak value was over $200,000, but my parents listed it on the market with the hope of selling for just $175,000 when they wanted to move to lower their mortgage. There were never any foreclosures in our neighborhood, the house is in one of the best school systems in the state, and it had a great location, yet the value dropped more significantly than it had in twenty years. This was a situation many homeowners didn’t know was possible

Social welfare problem is an inevitable issue that continues to exist in society and are getting more complex and difficult for people to prosper, accomplish and reach their potential. Poverty in low income working families intrigued my interest. Low income working families in the United States are earning less, below poverty line and are struggling to pay for necessity like food, rent, child care, medical bills and costs of transportation to work. Low wages workers are in jobs that have no security or benefits making it inevitable for them to invest in their children’s education, buying a car or getting a better job. Children are being malnourished because of their parents low income to buy healthy or sufficient food. Based on research, Single parents are mostly affected with lower income conflict vs nuclear family. Child care is demolishing 30% of workers income. Low wages are making workers unhealthy. Reports from J. Paul Leigh, University of California Davis, epidemiologists, “relationship between low wages