There are lots of poor people all around the world. They do not have enough (financial) resources to lead normal lives and meet basic needs. These people are deprived of access to healthy food, water, electricity, shelter, education, healthcare, etc. Show Although the USA is considered one of the richest countries in the world, there are still many poor individuals and families struggling with a lack of adequate resources. What is Poverty?Poverty is a condition of being unable to obtain or provide a standard level of food, water and/or shelter or decent housing. What should be understood, though, is that in a lot of cases it is not the fault of these (financially) poor people. A family can fall into poverty for many reasons — death in the family, sudden unemployment, crop failures. Some believe that all people can easily find a way out of poverty by mere hard work or ambition. However, what statistics show is that people who were born into poverty are more likely to remain poor despite how hard they work and try. If the economic system, i.e. the cycle of poverty is against them, the majority will not be able to find a way to get out of poverty. Who Lives in Poverty in the USA?People who make less than the federal government’s poverty threshold. For a family of four, the threshold is about $25,700. How many people exactly? In 2018, 38.1 million people or 11.8 percent lived in poverty in the USA. There are children, seniors, unemployed, minorities, etc. who belong to this group. Poverty and Social ExclusionShould people and families who live in poverty be excluded from or helped by society? Although it might seem difficult to comprehend, poverty leads to exclusion. The main thing when considering exclusion is the inability to access what is required for a decent life. When it comes to developed countries like the USA, these people are deprived of what is considered a normal life in these societies:
Two Main Classifications of Poverty – Absolute vs Relative PovertyBoth of these two types of poverty are focused on income and consumption. However, sometimes poverty is not only to do with economics, but it is also connected with society and politics. What is Absolute Poverty?This concept measures poverty only in relation to the amount of money necessary to meet basic needs such as food, clothing, shelter, safe drinking water, education, healthcare, etc. In this type of poverty people who are living below the aforementioned poverty threshold are not affected even if the country they live in is economically thriving. In other words, regardless of how rich and successful the US economy is, people living in absolute poverty have no benefits of the economic prosperity of their country. Absolute poverty, however, does not include a broader quality of life issues or the overall level of inequality in society. What the concept fails to recognize is that individuals also have important social and cultural needs. What is Relative Poverty?It is the condition in which people are deprived of the minimum amount of income needed in order to maintain the average standard of living in the society they live in. Thus, although people and households living in relative poverty or relative deprivation, as it is sometimes called, have a certain amount of money, it is still not enough to provide for the basics. However, this type of poverty defines poverty in connection with the economic status of other members of society. This means it changes with the economic growth of the country. Although people living in this type of poverty do not live in total (absolute) poverty, they still cannot afford the same standard of life as other people in society. This can sometimes refer to the lack of TV, the Internet, clean clothes, decent and safe housing, and education. Although it seems to be less serious than absolute poverty, it is still a category that can be permanent. Some families do not have access to the same standard of living as others do. They find themselves thus confined to low income and unable to break through the barriers. A Decent and Safe Home Tackles PovertyA safe home lays the foundation for leading a life of pride, dignity, and opportunity. It also decreases fear of exclusion or neglect. Providing deserving families in need with a roof under their heads is a way to deal with absolute and relative poverty. We can help these families break the vicious cycle of poverty. Let’s not forget that a decent and safe home leads to improvement in:
Children are susceptible to life-threatening diarrhea and intestinal infections. What about mental health? It goes without saying that it is greatly improved when people do not need to concern themselves about their physical health.
Everyone deserves a chance to enjoy the same standard of living and equal opportunities in order to live their life to their full potential. All families need a safe and secure home where they can unite, thrive and support one another. Many people say that home is where the heart is as this is the place where families grow, love and take care of not only their family members but also their neighbors and the community. Let’s take an active part in eradicating poverty by providing decent homes and the essential foundation for people to create and lead happy and prosperous lives. Get involved and help families in need have their home and hope.
Poverty is a state or condition in which a person or community lacks the financial resources and essentials for a minimum standard of living. Poverty means that the income level from employment is so low that basic human needs can't be met. Poverty-stricken people and families might go without proper housing, clean water, healthy food, and medical attention Each nation may have its own criteria for determining the poverty line and counting how many of its people are living in poverty.
Poverty refers to a lack of wealth or income such that individuals and households do not have the means to subsist or acquire the basic necessities for a flourishing life. This means being so poor as to struggle to obtain food, clothing, shelter, and medicines. Poverty is both an individual concern as well as a broader social problem. On the individual or household level, not being able to make ends meet can lead to a range of physical and mental issues. At the societal level, high poverty rates can be a damper on economic growth and be associated with problems like crime, unemployment, urban decay, lack of education, and poor health. As such, governments often instate social welfare programs to help lift families out of poverty. Some countries have stronger welfare states (social safety nets) than others. The U.S., for instance, tends to be much more individualistic and shuns welfare programs. European countries, in comparison, have a much broader range of welfare programs and support for the impoverished. Poverty status in the United States is assigned to people who do not meet a certain income threshold, which is set by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Poverty rates in the United States—the percentage of the U.S. population living in poverty—are calculated by the U.S. Census Bureau.
When measuring poverty, the U.S. Census Bureau excludes the following people:
According to the latest Census, 37.2 million people in the U.S. lived in poverty in 2020, up from 33.9 million in 2019. Each year, the Census Bureau updates its poverty threshold statistics. The table below shows the 2020 income thresholds for those in poverty. Each column represents the number of people living in a household under the age of 18.
The poverty thresholds, as well as the number of under-18 children in a home, are important because they help determine how government aid can be allocated, such as food assistance and medical care. The measurement for those in poverty uses pretax income or income before taxes are taken out by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Poverty has decreased in developed countries since the Industrial Revolution. Increased production reduced the cost of goods, making them more affordable, while advancements in agriculture increased crop yields, as well as food production.
The international poverty line is a monetary threshold under which an individual is considered to be living in poverty. It is calculated by taking the poverty threshold from each country—given the value of the goods needed to sustain one adult—and converting it into U.S. dollars. The current international poverty line is $1.90 per day.
Many people around the globe still struggle to make ends meet. According to the World Bank, an estimated 711 million people lived in extreme poverty—defined as surviving on less than the $1.90 per day line—in 2021, which equates to about 10% of the global population.
COVID-19 was responsible for plunging roughly 100 million more people into extreme poverty, according to the World Bank. The impact of poverty on children is substantial. Children who grow up in poverty typically suffer from severe and frequent health problems; infants born into poverty have an increased chance of low birth weight, which can lead to physical and mental disabilities. In some impoverished countries, poverty-stricken infants are nine times more likely to die in their first month compared to babies born in high-income countries. Those who live may have hearing and vision problems.
Children in poverty tend to miss more school due to sickness and endure more stress at home. Homelessness is particularly hard on children because they often have little to no access to healthcare and lack proper nutrition—which often results in frequent health issues. Access to good schools, healthcare, electricity, safe water, and other critical services remains elusive for many and is often determined by socioeconomic status, gender, ethnicity, and geography. For those able to move out of poverty, progress is often temporary. Economic shocks, food insecurity, and climate change threaten their gains and may force them back into poverty. Poverty is a difficult cycle to break and often passes from one generation to the next. Typical consequences of poverty include alcohol and substance abuse, limited access to education, poor housing and living conditions, and increased levels of disease. Heightened poverty is likely to cause increased tensions in society as inequality increases. These issues often lead to rising crime rates in communities affected by poverty. The United Nations and the World Bank are major advocates of reducing world poverty. The World Bank has an ambitious target of reducing poverty to less than 3% of the global population by 2030. Some of the actionable plans to eliminate poverty include the following:
For poverty to be eradicated as the World Bank has set out to do, communities, governments, and corporations would need to collaborate to implement strategies that improve living conditions for the world’s poor.
There is no single source of poverty. Poverty is often determined by socioeconomic status, ethnicity, gender, and geography. Many people are born into poverty and have little hope of overcoming it, while others may fall into this situation due to negative economic conditions, natural disasters, or surging living costs—as well as drug addiction, depression, and other mental health issues. Conflict and geopolitical unrest can also lead to poverty as families are displaced.
Like many other countries, poverty in the U.S. is measured by a set of income thresholds that vary by family size and composition. These thresholds are supplied by the Census Bureau and are updated annually to account for inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). Other countries do not use an absolute threshold, but instead a relative level of income below which the poverty line is established. For instance, a country may say that the bottom 10% of all earners constitute those in poverty.
According to the latest figures supplied by the U.S. Census Bureau, the states with the highest poverty rates are Mississippi, Louisiana, and New Mexico.
The answer to this question is complicated and nuanced. If it were easy or obvious, poverty would no longer be such a big issue. Social welfare programs and private philanthropy are ways to provide for those in poverty, along with access to essentials like clean water, good food, and adequate healthcare. However, more is needed. Programs that encourage impoverished individuals to obtain skills, jobs, and education are also important as a longer-term cure. |