Causes of Poverty in the United States Essay

Many individuals all over the world are affected by poverty. In order to completely understand the cause, the effect, and the solution to ending poverty, we must first understand the meaning of poverty. Poverty is the condition where an individual’s basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter are not being met (business dictionary). According to the World Bank Organization, poverty is also the lack of healthcare, education, information, and jobs. There are two general types of poverty: Absolute and Relative. Absolute poverty occurs when individuals cannot obtain adequate resources to support a minimum level of physical health. Relative poverty occurs when individuals do not

More than 3 billion people are living in poverty across the world, among those an estimated 43.1 million people in America are living in poverty. There are many causes of poverty, but mass incarceration is one of the most prominent ones. When people get out of prison or jail, they have a very low chance of getting a job and finding a home because they have the label of being a criminal. People tend to explain poverty especially poverty in America is that people are lazy and do not want to work, but that is not the reason at all. The government is ultimately responsible for distinguishing who is in poverty and what measures are going to be done to help those people get assistance. But because people do not particularly talk about this

More than 800 million people in the world are malnourished, 777 million of them are from the developing world (Raphel, S., 2014). Poverty is an issue that must be addressed to the population loud and clear or everyone will end up suffering. There are many families trying to survive and live from paycheck to paycheck. Unfortunately, there are some families that are unable to support himself or herself or any family member. One important key issue of poverty in the United States is inequality. Many Americans blame the poor people for their own fate but you should never judge a book by its cover. There can be many reasons why an individual or families end up in poverty. For example, low wage jobs, discrimination and social inequality, vulnerability to natural disasters, war and political instability. Another big issue we face today is child poverty. This is a very critical issue because these young children are our future. If we let these children live in poverty, there is a higher chance they will drop out of school, look for work in order to support their family, or give up in life.

Poverty, a common problem in the US and yet, something that people consistently overlook. We are often unaware of the magnitude of poverty in the U.S and sometimes even disregard it. People living in destitution are at greater risk for behavioral and mental problems. Children or Teens who live in poverty are prone to poor academic achievements, become school dropouts , or grow subject to abuse or neglect. People in poverty also occasionally show signs of anxiety and depression.

Poverty has been an ongoing issue since the birth of this Nation. When one thinks of poverty the last people we think of are the ones closest to home. As children some are told “finish your dinner, there are starving kids in Africa”, but what about the starving children whom are in neighborhoods close to us? Poverty is everywhere, even the places that are thought of as wealthy. Poverty in America; a continuing issue.There are many different definitions of poverty. The United States Census Bureau states that

Over the past years poverty has become more common in America, affecting millions of Americans. There are two types of poverty: absolute poverty and relative poverty. According to  Merriam-Webster (2017), Absolute poverty is not having any basic human needs to survive, in the other hand, relative poverty is not having enough money or resources like others in society do. Poverty is caused by lack of money, jobs, and education.

The issue of poverty in the United States seems to lie on the grounds of race education and family structure. As expected I found that educational levels paralleled poverty levels. Unexpected , research was found to prove that race did in fact play a substantial role in poverty. Family structure along with other influential factors either locked an individual into poverty or provided a means for escape from the continuing cycle. Other factors contributing to poverty was the location of homes or neighborhoods and the accessibility to better paying jobs.

As you can see, there are more than the basics of poverty. These poor people struggle on a daily basis to provide the needs of themselves and their family. Poverty affects adults and their children in so many ways. I believe that poverty should be one of the main focuses of America. I have deep sorrow for these people doing whatever they can to make money. I think that poverty needs to be decreased in the United States. I don’t know how the people in poverty do it. They have a weight that they are carrying on their shoulders that they shouldn’t. It’s time for a change.

However, this system of measuring poverty is flawed because if a family makes a dollar more above the set limit, they do not qualify for financial help from the government (NCCP, 2008).The poverty threshold is an inadequate measure of whether people are considered poor or not. Current poverty measures are flawed because it assumes how much a family spends and does not accurately include family resources such as Earned Income Tax Credit (NCCP, 2008). The way that the government measures poverty is based on outdated information that was set in the 60s. Because it has not been sufficient to keep up with the standard of living, those who are living in “high cost cities like New York and those who live in rural areas of the country” (NCCP, 2008) are barely getting by.

Poverty has always been a key factor in United States History. Ever sense Americas birth there have been groups affected by poverty, but the forms of the poverty that affected these groups have changed as well as the nature of poverty itself in the USA. The abolition of slavery, the forced assimilation of native Americans, and mass immigration changed character of poverty within the united states change due to an evolution from agriculture to industry and a change in the domestic policies of the government.

I choose the topic poverty because it is an issue that affect many people. Poverty is issue that many assume occurs only in a third world country instead of the United States. Poverty occurs in the United States however it is not broadcast on national television. As the researcher, my objective is to highlight the cause and effect of poverty. Most individuals who work low wage jobs live paycheck to paycheck and rely on public assistance as supplement. Different issue contributes to poverty is job loss, Divorce, and low wages. Wages is a major component of poverty it is a struggle raising a family off minimum wage one must calculate the cost of living such as rent, car note, and kids necessity. Poverty has a negative effect on families such

The question “Why is there so much poverty in the United States?” has such a broad spectrum of issues. There is no simple cure or single cause of poverty. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, “the 2011 Poverty Guidelines are $10,890 for a single member household and $22,350 for a family of four” (par 13). In addition, “families’ incomes that fall below the threshold given, means that every individual in the household are considered to be in poverty” (par 13). Poverty is too complex an issue to be the result of just one problem, but we can narrow down the subject, to show the effects of how the lack of education can diminish our countries resources and how that has a ripple effect on future

Poverty refers to the state or condition of having little or no money, goods, or means of support. Society often classifies this state as being poor. According to dosomething.org, 805 million people worldwide do not have enough food to eat, and nearly ½ of the world's population lives on less than 2.50 dollars a day. Dosomething.org states that 1.3 billion live in extreme poverty on less than 1.25 a day, 1 billion children worldwide are living in poverty, and 22,000 children die each day due to poverty. These statistics are rather alarming, and the first step to finding a solution to this problem is determining the exact cause. Many would ask how this transpired. The answer to this is the determining factor of what happened and the cause of

There are several opposing theories about the causes and of poverty in minority populations in the United States. The divide splits the cultural and behavior arguments, and the structural and economic ones. Though the arguments made by Wilson for the structural causes of poverty are less damaging for the individual and places more of the blame on economic, political, and other institutional forces for the cause of inner city poverty for African Americans.

Poverty is the lack of the basic needs of life, including food, shelter, clothing and safe drinking water. For a person to live normally, it is important to meet a certain level of physical, social, and emotional needs. People who live in poverty have difficult time to achieve those as they are not welcomed in many places. Because of their low incomes, they have troubles in maintaining their health, hunger, education. Poverty has become a large issue around the world. It is something that many of us know about but we’re not realizing just how big of a problem it is. This paper will include basic information about poverty, its effects, facts and statistics which can make people aware and want to help reduce poverty.