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Welfare Program Reflection

Decent Essays
Over the last few weeks, I have gained a tremendous amount of knowledge about the social welfare system in America. Everything that I have been reading has been an eye opener on the ins and outs of the policies. While growing up as a child, my family and I did not have experience being on welfare. In my childhood, both of my parents worked and did not qualify to receive help from the government because they “made too much” or were proven to be able to take care of a family. Therefore I was raised knowing little about the system and not understanding all of the services provided. I had my first experiences with welfare assistance my junior year in college.
My first time using government assistance was in college. I was a third year college student who could not afford a meal plan, and instead of buying food, with the little money that I did have, I applied for SNAP (food stamps). I learned about the SNAP benefits through my friend and other peers on campus. I attended Southern Illinois University of Edwardsville; I applied for services in Madison County and Alton Illinois. At the time, I did have a part-time job on campus, working no less than
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At first, I did not understand where the St. Louis city went wrong with raising children, having peaceful neighborhoods, and lowering the crime rates. I always believed that the society in St. Louis was segregated and divided. I also felt that a lot of blacks were hostile towards one another. In the Pruitt Igoe documentary, I learned where the foundation of crime and anger derived from. A man in the film explained how fighting was used to mark your territory. He stated that his mother even encouraged him to fight back, when a kid stole his shoes. My values are still the same. I believe in treating other the way you want to be treated, and that no individual is lesser than
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