Systematic Economic Change And Poverty Reduction

In “Changing the Face of Poverty”, the author Diana George shows different ways poverty is advertised and displayed. She disagrees with the way poverty is addressed and visually represented, in a limited way. I agree with the way she wants people to acknowledge how poverty is being misunderstood.

The South America has evolved as the one of the most dynamic region of the world so much development taking place. In 2005 Latin American economies managed to grow at average of 5.5% while inflation is in single digit which shows that it has created the economic prerequisites to deal with the aforementioned problems.

implementing strong policies, like the Nordic countries have done (Raphael, 201, pg.397). Supporting parties more interested in programs to reduce poverty can be a start and by supporting and joining them can make a difference. As recommended in Chapter 12, priority should be given to families with children suffering from poverty and steps should be taken to reduce income inequality and improving living standards. Canadians should confront their representatives and ask whether anything is being done to reduce poverty and furthermore raise concerns with agencies, institutions and organizations interested in poverty (Raphael, 2011, pg.458). People should ask their professionals, employers, and unions to raise poverty issues, since they can be

Words provoke preconceived ideas and images in the mind, when it comes to a situation like poverty these preconceived notions can have undesirable and unintended consequences. Diana George examines the semantics and the imagery of the word poverty in her article titled “Changing the Face of Poverty; Nonprofits and the Problem of Representation. While also addressing the issue of the perception poverty and what someone in poverty truly looks like (676). Prof. George is arguing that organizations like Habitat for Humanity, which are created to help people in poverty actually perpetuate the wrong image of what someone in poverty looks like (678). Most organizations created to help those in need, especially those in the US tend to portray poverty as what is seen and thought of as living conditions in Third World countries (683). In reality, poverty is all around each and every one of us in this country on a daily basis, and people might not always recognize it for what it is (681,682). Furthermore, the majority of people living in poverty in the United States do not live like or look like someone living in a Third World country. But in reality they are still living in poverty nonetheless (682,683). Organizations that portray people living in poverty here in the US as totally devastated and completely impoverished are doing a disservice to the people they are attempting to help. Consequently, by doing this they are giving a limiting idea of what someone living in poverty

To what extent is reducing the number of people living in absolute poverty sufficient to achieve economic growth and development?

Throughout the 1800s Latin America was trying to catch up with the rest of the Western world, progressing with increased exports, manufacturing, and industrialization. These advances did not stop the internal problems of most Latin nations. With these changes, as in the rest of the world, there was a growth in urban populations and in the middle class, adding another layer in the social structure; which in turn is just another group that will vie for power, and benefits from the government (180-90). This period is characterized with a large amount of wealth being concentrated in the hands of a few, which on paper shows great economic progress in the form of a GDP number, but there was still great wealth disparity. The switch, in Latin America, from conservatives in the early part of the 1800s, to liberals for the latter half, eventually turned to authoritarian governance; the democratic goals liberals set out to achieve were trashed for power and economic benefits, in keeping with previous generations (191).

“Did you know that one in eight homes struggle to put food on the table” (Salvation Army, 2014). Poverty is a problem that creates a bigger problem in a problem. In Canada, Canada uses three different measurements for poverty. In Canada there are populations that are at a higher risk of being in poverty then others. There are effects that affect individuals, families, and a whole population. Also, Canada has ways of benefiting families that are in poverty that need help. Therefore, Canada has done a lot to help prevent poverty but, unfortunately it helps for a short term.

The struggle for equality in Latin America is a perpetual conflict. This battle began in the fifteenth century when the Spaniards and Portuguese colonized the lands of the Americas. In a book titled: Latin America: an Interpretive History, author Julie A. Charlip states, Latin America has moved from paradise to poverty as a result of historical patterns that have developed over the years” (Charlip and Burns 2002, 1). The constant redundancy of the elites taking advantage of the poor is a plague that haunts the Latin American people to this day. Moreover, the struggles include income inequality, suffrage inequality, land inequality, and the desire for personal and political liberty. Nevertheless,

Latin American revolutions tend to follow similar patterns as we have seen throughout the readings in Mexico, Cuba and Nicaragua. There are always many aspects to a revolution, but the common theme of wealth distribution played a crucial factor in every revolution we discussed this semester. Whether it be corruption or manipulation of wealth, the elites will do whatever it takes to maintain that status of being the “elites” and keep putting down the working and lower classes to maintain that hierarchy. In Mexico, as Charlip and Burns explains it, ““Land, a principal source of wealth, remained in the hands of a few. Foreigners owned between 14 and 20 percent of it. Ninety-five percent of the rural population owned none (Pg. 174).” Mexico ultimately was able to rid the

I liked reading your post this week. I agree with you in a lot of things you emphasized. Think about that there are 126 improvement programs. I do not want to believe that these 126 poverty improvement programs have not helped the poverty stop in the United States, and most of the programs have worked properly. I believe that the United States will win over the poverty monster sooner or later with some regulations, changes and improvements, such as more tax collections from the rich people and enterprises. Enterprises! Yes, enterprises! Some of them do not want to pay the regular taxes as they are supposed to do. Why? If they pay regularly without any tax free events, the amount you will pay would help the poverty stop, and at

Latin American states prior to the 1950s never before experienced the fundamental changes characteristic of social revolutions. Specifically, this mode of revolution requires popular uprisings of the masses in order to transform an existing socioeconomic and political order. That being said, the responsibility of a state is to further develop its nation. Together with providing a modernized economic development and an effective political framework meant to organize and stabilize its communities. Furthermore, its social responsibility is to cultivate a national identity based on shared values, behaviors, and beliefs. For one thing, economic development demands the remodeling of the country’s wealth, education, urbanization, and industrialization

Guided by economists from the University of Chicago, Pinochet instituted a number of neoliberal reforms that spelled disaster for the millions of Chilean workers and farmers. Pinochet sold nationalized industries, banks and even the pension system to the highest bidder, abolished minimum wage, abolished union rights and seriously reduced taxes on the rich. Pinochet’s reforms led to a rise in unemployment, from 4.4 percent to over 30 percent, marking the highest increase ever in Latin American history (Wordpress, 2009). The price of exports fell, as did real wages for workers, and poverty, homelessness, starvation and infant mortality rose dramatically. While their reforms were not very successful, Chile has prized political and economic stability over reincorporating the electorate so many institutions of the Pinochet regime have remained unchanged by Chileans. Even if they wanted change due to the design of the 1980 Constitution the authoritarian enclaves within the government give the Right direct influence over any and all actions the government may take. This further limits Chile from transitioning to a true democracy after the influence of

Although Latin America has faced many social, political, and economic issues within the last three centuries, inequality remains one of the most important, historical, and omnipresent aspects of the region’s culture. As Europeans took over Latin America during the time of colonization, they implemented many elitist social structures that have held strong and are evident today (Harris). Income inequality is the most visible and greatest disparity that the region faces; yet inequality between gender, ethnicities, and education remain strong and significant problems with a necessity for improvement. Inequality of wealth and disparity of power and influence are Latin American’s greatest curses and are at the root of many of the

“Proponents and analysts of SD [sustainable development] need to clearly reject the attempts to focus on economic growth as a means to poverty removal and/or environmental sustainability” (Lele 1991: 618). Do you agree with this statement? Explain your position.

La tierra mas hermosa. The most beautiful land. Latin America and the Caribbean maintain the humble beauty of many indigenous regions. The rugged mountains of Bolivia are scattered across graded lands. The Quechua people can be seen wearing richly decorated ponchos as they plant seeds for forming. Weathered volcanic lavas are stretched over the lands of Guatemala, and the heavily wooded forest trees can also be seen in the eastern slopes of the Andes. The azure blue oceans of Havana sparkle as the golden sun illuminates the sky. These humble lands have always been here; streams of people have flowed through these lands for centuries. It is only the globalización that is relatively new, and along with that comes the life one lives in these lands--pobreza y viviendo en el infierno [poverty and living in hell]. The impact of globalization in Latin America has caused a ripple in the lives of many individuals living in Latin America and the Caribbean. Although globalization is not a new concept, the process of globalization has drastically expanded and involved into social, political, and economic changes that weakens the sovereignty and power that helps create policies and reform government institutions.