Varun Jaitly
Brian Lewis
2,200 words
The Value of Sweat
Poverty in the US has always existed, as it has existed everywhere else since the days when man first learned to trade goods for goods. Yet despite the centuries of experience we have with poverty, there is still such a rampant amount that the question comes up often as to whether we have learned anything at all. Sociologists apply socialization and the culture of poverty to better explain the reasons for rampant poverty, as well as outside factors that create barriers into reaching a higher economic status. Despite all the theories, and possible explanations for the resilience of poverty we still haven't been able to attack the core issues and drastically reduce poverty while simultaneously creating conditions for personal growth. In The Book "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" you can see some major sociological themes take place in the 40s, such as Poverty and Race discriminations. These issues despite being ages old, continue to be major problems in society. It is clear that in order to change this stark reality we must attack poverty from multiple angles simultaneously rather than fixing one aspect and expecting everything to change.
An Insidious Culture
There are multiple factors of poverty, and to attempt to understand what causes poverty without better understanding where it came from is one of the biggest blunders both policy makers and voters make.Poverty as defined by the Dictionary as to be "Very Poor", what is poor in the United States in 2014? In the United States, if you make less than $23,000 with 3 individuals in your family unit you are below the poverty line. Those under the poverty line depending on where they live aren't dealing with issues that used to define poverty, however some are still prevalent. Today in economic terms, anyone who is not in command of their resources due to their socioeconomic level would be considered to be in poverty. For instance, those people getting their food from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, would be considered to be living in conditions of poverty. These are economic factors and come with being in poverty, yet they lack the premise that defines Poverty. In a TED talk, a gentleman from North Korea who had escaped into China described poverty as nothing more and nothing less than Humiliation. This concept is forgotten amidst the numbers and economic talk, because it's hard to quantify how someone who lives in a society of plenty doesn't have access to certain aspects of life that those in a higher Economic threshold are privileged to.
"The argument that poor people adopt certain practices that differ from those of middle-class, society in order to adapt and survive in difficult economic circumstances." This argument is true for most people in poverty, they tend to do things that keep them in poverty. For instance in the book "the Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks" Henrietta's cousin Fred decides to move on from the place he is to a place where there may be more opportunity. This move allows him to get a job at a steel mill which ends up becoming very successful. That move was something he did to better his life and a lot of people especially those in poverty tend to not move on and try to do things that could better their lives. The difference between the time that Henrietta was stuck in poverty and now is both the discriminatory stances then and the barriers to success today. Back then poverty was limited to barriers created by the law to stop African Americans from accessing better jobs or having resources on the same level as the rest of the country. Now however segregation has become illegal however now resources to better life are still limited to those in poverty. If you are in poverty now in a low income area, you have a 99% chance of being on social benefits, if you are on social benefits you are probably working a minimum wage job. The problem with these jobs is that there is a ceiling as to how high you get and how what happens when you reach the top. For most minimum wage jobs you make hardly enough to be able to provide yourself with the basic necessities, not to mention the hours you work. This all adds up to opportunities lost doing things you could be doing. This is created by disparities in low income areas and property tax so people grow up without being socialized properly to be able to grow and learn into good careers. So despite laws bringing down certain barriers, stigmas and old ideals brought up new ones.
The Culture of Poverty argument states that those in poverty do things that keep them in poverty. An inner city kid rather than spend the extra time needed to study for an upcoming test will go and take part in deviant behavior. A parent will let their kids watch TV rather than enforce productive time management since they can't be around all the time to guide the kids. These small things over a period of 18 years will socialize a child into an adult that doesn't value education, doesn't know how to manage time, lacks in subjects necessary for greater achievements. As this teenager grows up he becomes far more disgruntled by his situation, his unhappiness leads to taking shortcuts like crime to have more. In a society where we are all drunk in the lust for both material and immaterial desires, subjecting people with less to the same amounts of desire is a powder keg in a forest fire. We create the demand but only some have the means to obtain the supply, like a broke crack addict we've drugged society into wanting things, and as more and more realize they can't have it all through what they do already, they will revert to shortcuts. That is the culture of poverty, and how it fits into the greater climate that the world is in today.
RACE
With the current state of the Jobs market it is evident that companies will be extremely selective when hiring workers, however sometimes this goes beyond a candidates repertoire. In many cases an individual may be turned away from a job opportunity due to their race. This is an unfortunate practice and illegal but it still happens. There was a time when a Racial Discrimination was illegal but that time has long since passed yet we still see individuals discriminate. As much as the United states is the land of Opportunity there is a lack of something that is necessary for opportunity to be truly free. In the text book "You may ask Yourself", chapter 7; there is a piece on the "Equality of Opportunity" This above all is one of the major deterrents to genuine growth in Lower Income communities, there is a lack of Equal Opportunity. There will always be an imbalance in wealth in any society, that is basic economics, however such a drastic imbalance between wealth and opportunity in the US based on factors such as race is unacceptable
Although discrimination has been around for centuries, it has been making its way from open policies to backdoor instances. Discrimination was at its peak before civil rights reforms came into play, when racism was rampant. However in today's world discrimination comes in the form of unequal income between men and women, to disparities in arrest rates based on race. Now in the 21st century discrimination happens behind closed doors where it's harder to deal with compared to open and rampant discrimination. For Instance going back to the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, throughout the book when the author discusses the period of her life there is clear evidence of blatant -and legal- racial discrimination. However at the time that was perfectly ok, while now it's illegal. However the majority of those under the poverty line tend to be Hispanics and African Americans. Why? because this country despite getting past that time of legal racism still has those that believe that African Americans are not as good as other races. In the end Discrimination becomes a factor of Poverty created by the outside world. you can find, when going back in time, all the nuances that made that time different from now. However in the US and most other paces you will see a long history of poverty and those suffering from Poverty. Whether it's a modern African American teen to Henrietta Lack, the realities of discrimination are real and present and only add to the cycle of poverty.
Looking to our Leaders
We pretend that the social boundaries, the things that separate individual communities apart are so beyond our grasp of understanding or changing that we say "leave them be". We pretend that those in poverty deserve poverty because they did something to deserve less than us, whether it's their decisions in life or pure dumb luck, they deserve what they got. In many cases that is fine, someone with marginal resources that failed and ended up in poverty is someone who deserve to be there. However the reality is that the way society is set up, it's usually not all their fault. Take for instance a mother, early 20's High School dropout raising 1 maybe 2 kids. She had those kids out of wedlock while underage, she did not get an abortion because she could not afford the medical costs. She is now a single mother raising two kids with limited resources and an income that will be capped when she reaches the highest position that is reachable by a working individual like her with no formal training or applicable skills. She made mistakes, sure, does this mean that her fate is sealed?
There is an ongoing debate in this country between policy makers as to whether social policies should be extensive or limited. Many believe that the single mother who screwed up by having a kid in High School deserves to live in the squalor she put herself in. Others believe that her previous mistakes should not condemn her to a life of poverty or a life where she is seeking support without being able to get her children the resources necessary to compete in this world. Both sides have compelling arguments, but this has gone beyond compelling arguments. We have reached a point where humanity is moving on to another level of empathy, that has been adopted in other countries yet is being demonized in the United States and such countries. This idea that a person's mistakes are their damnation is an old idea and that if the person shows the will to improve and add to society, then they should have the chance to do so. It is hard to look at an individual in squalor and say to their face their mistakes have ruined their lives and the lives of their children. The fact that we are so high on our pedestals of rule that we can condemn a man for his actions despite any desire to change, is disgusting. We have reverted back to a society that no longer cares to move forward, and clean the rust off, but rather leave the rust on and just throw the whole thing out. This idea that we should let the inner cities rot with their infectious diseases of drugs, violence, and crime is one that is based on a lack of humanity and a sense of laziness. The black communities if anything are human capital, brains, arms, hands, and aspirations waiting to be harnessed by anyone willing to put the effort and money in. Instead policy makers want to cut the budget, in hopes of easing a deficit that cannot be made smaller by cutting spending. Thus, we look to our Policy makers, our leaders, the Individuals we voted into power, we look to them and hope they can apply the one basic human trait that allows us to go from a nation that thinks it can condemn to a nation that can grow. Not just in numbers but also in strength, the answers to key issues like the lack of manufacturing are in those black communities. Where instead of showing them that hard work pays off, we create an atmosphere of hate.
In the end, Henrietta Lacks died a horrible death amidst poverty, suffering, and a time of hatred. What she left behind was something most people at the time thought could not be left behind by an African American. Her gift saved lives, destroyed diseases, and moved us forward in ways unheard of before her. All because of an African American women, who got her credit for the first time, many years after her cells were taken from her. This idea that all people are created equal is not true, we have created a society that all men are not created equal. They may be equal at heart but to us everyone has a value, and that is where we lose our humanity. That is where things like poverty, discrimination, and hatred begin. Where we lose our humanity, and the man next to you becomes nothing more than a dollar value.
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