The English Underclass in Dr. Theodore Dalrymle's “Life at the Bottom

Initially, Matthew Desmond’s book Evicted represents a profound and realistic ethnography about people’s day-to-day experiences of poverty with a particular focus on the outcomes of housing instability within the state. He exploits the evidence from housing court administrative records, excerpts from the news, and different surveys of renters to support his point of view revealed in the book. In his work, Desmond raises questions why the state is introducing the housing policy that deteriorates the position of tenants renting from private landlords and how a person with the monthly income of $628 and rent of $550 can not only provide his family but also survive. In Evicted, Matthew Desmond reasonably criticizes the American housing system according to which most of the low-income tenants are left alone in the private rental market and have no options to receive affordable apartments.

The book titled "Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City" by Matthew Desmond talked about the crisis that low-income families face in finding and maintaining affordable housing. Desmond explains the situation like rising housing cost, a shortfall of federal housing assistance, and falling incomes among the poor. Mostly, African-American poor single parent with children face a high risk of eviction. The poor living is something that no one will like to leave, but the conditions of your environment make it so. Poor living leads you into places you would not like to go and keep you in places you do not want. According to Social Science and Medicine Journal titled Health-related Effects of Welfare-to-Work Policies, "Welfare to work" program is a program that is established to help the poor and needy get out of poor leaving circumstances, which may lead to better health regarding improved income, good nutrition, and reduced stress. In my opinion, welfare to work rather causes harm than good since this makes them remain poor and stably housed. (Ayala & Rodríguez, 2013)

Around two-thirds of Americans with low-income qualify for government assistance, yet they aren’t getting it. Instead, they must wait in lists ranging from 3 to 5 years long in order to receive help. This article, written by Andrew Flowers, delves into the housing assistance crisis and the two problems that cause this: affordability as well as the lack of funding and ineffectiveness of government programs.

A time when we gave young people the opportunity to thrive. A time when we gave veterans the opportunity to find decent housing in the very country they risked everything to protect. A time when we gave all those who’ve fallen on hard times the chance to turn the page and start anew.” Everyone is helping families meet this need. Everyone is giving them new hope for the future. And because of every ones work, in just three years Castro has seen an eight percent drop in family homelessness. Society must create an infrastructure that gives everyone a fair shot at achieving the American Dream. A little over than one million people are served in HUD-supported emergency, transitional and permanent housing programs each year. There are four types of federally defined categories under which individuals and families may qualify as homeless, they are: literally homeless, imminent risk of homelessness, homeless under other Federal statues and fleeing/attempting to flee domestic violence. Other impairments such as depression, untreated mental illness, post traumatic stress disorder, and physical disabilities are also responsible for a large portion of the homeless. Two trends are largely responsible for the rise in homelessness over the past twenty thru twenty-five years: a growing shortage of affordable rental housing and a simultaneous increase in

These areas are “prime moneymaker[s] for those who saw ripe opportunity in land scarcity, housing dilapidation and racial segregation” (259). The strong demand for housing in these relatively cheap areas, allows them to charge inflated rent for inadequate housing, ensuring that the lower class they target can never afford to leave these areas. Legally, landlords were allowed to rent out units not up to code if they were honest about it (73) and continued this process because renters can easily be replaced. Heavy dependence on welfare makes them more likely to miss payments, leaving them constantly vulnerable to the threat of eviction. Landlords have resources at their disposal to constantly fill their properties with this lower class. For example, Belinda managed resident’s welfare, relieving the possibility of missed payments and brought her clients to landlords, like Sherrena (cite). This relationship between tenant and landlord subsides when eviction becomes the most cost effective solution, because landlords take financially losses personally (cite), like when renters demand repairs, violate nuisance property ordinance or start looking for better housing- all of which pose a cost or fine to the landlord. For example, one family bypassed Sherrena in order to get repairs. Another example is when Crystal called the police for help

This all started with the rise of “Affordable housing”, where a local nonprofit buys a piece of land and build a house for the needy in it. Now that might sound like a great idea for those who are faced with rising house prices in the downtown area, but it is just what those builders want. To push the poor

The United States Census Bureau reports that, in 2015, 13.5% of Americans lived below the poverty line (Proctor, Semega, & Kollar, 2016). The negative effects of poverty are well documented and can have a widespread effect on the lives of those individuals who are affected. They are more likely to experience income and food insecurity, chronic health conditions, and lower quality education than wealthier Americans (United States Government Accountability Office, 2007). Additionally, and more importantly to the purposes of this report, the poor are more likely to experience homelessness or live in inadequate housing. The National Alliance to End Homelessness (2016) estimates that over 500 thousand people were homeless on any given night in 2015. The federal government, recognizing this issue exists, has responded by allocating “50 billion in housing assistance specifically designated for low-income households” (CBO, p.1) in 2014, which was used to assist nearly five million households through various programs (CBPP, p.1). The housing voucher program, which accounted for the largest percentage, provides families with subsidized housing, while allowing them to choose where they live, provided the housing meets certain health and safety thresholds set by local public housing agencies (HUD, Housing Choice). Despite access to

Have you been in a stage in your life that leaves not only you but your children as well on the street with nowhere to go? If you’re family is not making enough money and you need assistance from the government, Public Housing may be the thing you need. Public housing are homes that are owned by the government and in some cases by private landlords who give low income citizens a home. Public Housing was created in between the nineteenth and twentieth century in hopes to decrease poverty rates from inclining. The Industrial Revolution caused poverty that led to sickness and death to rise which convinced the government to create this subsidy. As in the old days, there is criteria you must meet to qualify for Public Housing. In order to

Lastly, poverty in America is a critical problem, and its three main triggers are a poor economy, drug/alcohol use, and lack of education. People can choose the destiny in their life whether to be successful or not, but being in the society of America today, may limit their success. Choosing to go down the drug/alcohol path will negatively affect people's success. Also, for those that choose to not get an education and dropout of high school, well their chances of succeeding in life are slim to none. Overall, people must get an education, and avoid drug/alcohol to not be in poverty in the 2016 American

With a corrupt housing assistance not only comes the families who refuse to work because of their children, but come the people who have a steady income who keep it hush-hush so they can receive benefits from the government. Personally working at a real estate company I've met quite a few people who are abusing our housing assistance. People who resume working and benefitting from the government assistance is a mockery of what our country should stand for. These people opt themselves out of paying taxes or taking any responsibility for what they must provide for their own families. They use the government assistance simply because of greed. The more money for them the better, they do not care that there are people being rejected the same benefits who actually need it. This is

Imagine a woman and her child, they experience domestic abuse at home, and when the husband decides to kick them out, they have nowhere else to go. She has a job, but a lack of affordable housing makes it impossible for her to rent or buy her own place. Her only option is a homeless shelter, yet that is no place to raise a child. And at the same time, a homeless shelter is expensive and an eyesore for the community. Is housing a basic right, or a personal problem? Many citizens of America have argued that national or state programs designed to benefit the homeless will hurt our economy and encourage the homeless or those on the edge of homelessness to be lazy, but upon close examination of the programs and their effects, it is proven that these programs can help our economy and add more able bodies into the American work force.

Some states have government housing as low rates and is income based. These programs are typically on a waiting list. Section 8 is another program to help with housing assistance and is attached to the tenant and follows them as they move. The federal Pell Grant helps with educational assistance for low-income families. I think the government is doing some things to help but I am not sure if they can be doing more. What else can be done and where can the funding come from? I think this issue requires a multidisciplinary approach. It is not as simple as giving the help. Issues causing the problems need to be addressed. Do mental health concerns exist? Is there drug use or alcohol use involved? Are these people willing to accept help and change

There are several core values that play a role in the public housing program. These values are reflective in how the tenants are selected to live in the housing, inspected throughout their duration, and the programs available under public housing available to tenants. A significant value is Democratic Egalitarianism, which is the idea that all people should have access to the same opportunities, including education, politics, and housing (Day& Schiele, 2013). The goal of public housing is to provide “decent and safe housing for eligible low income families, the elderly, and people with disabilities” many believe that this will assist children and families and prevent homelessness while putting families back on an equal footing with the rest of society. However, other prevalent values displayed across these programs work against this idea of Democratic Egalitarianism.

From reading the articles, the term that hit me the most was “poverty relief” what is poverty relief? From reading the articles and looking at the statistics, I always feel “they” the government is helping out the wrong people, 75% of the time. I want to use this example, when my sister turned 19-years-old, graduated high school, my sister moved in 1996, had her own place, and was okay. Yet, ten years later, when I turned 18-years-old, graduated high school, could not move out. Where was the relief for me? Why are there apartments just for 65 and up, shouldn’t there be apartments for students who are going to school, and trying to reach this American Dream. Also, to point out these “poverty relief” programs, why are there a lot of crimes happening

A lot of the working classes still cannot afford to own their own homes. Either these houses are not being built or the deposit or mortgage rates are too high for them to afford. Because of this they are forced either to