Preview

Poverty in America

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
774 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Poverty in America
John Newman
June 14, 2013
Course: 098/108 Many people want to blame the government and their short comings for the reasons that affect their upward mobility, but indigent people must fully evaluate their negative decisions, and their consequences, that have made poverty a perpetuating cycle in not only their lives, but their children’s. Chiefly, bad decisions like, teen pregnancy, lack of education and complacency keeps poverty revolving, currently, and for future generations. The government does have an obligation to help the poor and needy in America, but as individuals, people have an obligation to help themselves in their own pursuit of happiness and success. To help end poverty, people should assess the issues of the generation before, so that the next generation has a better future.
. To begin with, one of the major causes of poverty is a person’s decision to drop out of school. Timothy Eagan, a correspondent with the New York Times, reported in his journal article, “No Degree, and No Way Back to the Middle”, that a man in his fifties with a college degree is expected to make 81 percent more than a man without one. Years prior to it was 52 percent. Without education people are more susceptible to undesirable lifestyles then those who graduate. Besides the dilemma of having no education, dropouts face a number of challenges that could have possibly been avoided if they had decided to finish schooling. First, the non- graduate has challenges obtaining employment, consequently, they engage in criminal activity.
As a result of criminal activity, non-graduates tend to end up in the penal system, and are then stigmatized against future employment. With the job market being so scarce and work wages so low, those with no diploma or degree will have no chance of coming out of poverty. In addition, low income people are often eligible for assistance, such as reduced cost housing, food stamps, child care and insurance. These

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    poverty. There has been many people, children more that live in the streets and death is seen to…

    • 696 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The average degree for the community is high school level. About 20.3% of the population holds a Bachelor’s degree. The poverty rate for those who have a Bachelor’s degree or higher is 4.8% and for those with a high school degree 10%.…

    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    among lower income families and minorities. In the article, “For Poor, Leap to College Often…

    • 1758 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The reality of poverty is a silent Killer that is ignored by most but by opening our eyes and taking a stand against poverty we can live in a poverty free world. “In addition, the government isn’t doing as much as they should be but in America it’s helping people stay in a home when they lose it all such as president Obama has set an act that provides income support but still there are still 45 million people living in poverty who can’t get access to these benefits” (U.S. Poverty and Inequality). Furthermore, some might say that people living in poverty are in poverty because they chose to be poor. Many rich people said that all poor people should work or look for a job that helps them live better or their lazy to work. “Rich people say that because they realized that every person that is rich has worked hard to be rich, they also realized that if poor people start to work hard like they did they wouldn’t live in poverty” (Counter Argument Poverty). As many people say people are poor because they chose to be poor, rich people think this because all the successful people think that everyone’s life is the same as theirs but it’s not true because when someone is born in poverty they spend most of their life in poverty, and their adult life. “In addition, the cause of…

    • 850 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    go home

    • 318 Words
    • 1 Page

    Its all most a form of discrimination,towards the people who dosent have a seretant type of personality. or mental or is not edacated.The reason the jobs are in a drout. which is seeming to caues more vilance every were in schools work places movie theaters & more. they should pass bills to tax the rich more for the pore.…

    • 318 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Poverty, how do we define this? Whichever way you look at poverty whether it be at a…

    • 1422 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    College drop out boom

    • 306 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In this essay, Dave Leonhardt writes about the reasons why students dropout the school, focusing in poor and working class. He illustrates the experience of Andy Bleving of Chilhowie, Virginia. Some of the reasons are: the cost of tuition, economic problems, children follow the path of their parents, motivation, lack of academic preparation in high school.…

    • 306 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In our failed efforts to put an end to poverty in America, it is still remains alive and well, leaving millions of Americans to subject themselves to strenuous acts just to feed themselves and their families. The problem of persistent poverty is a complex one that makes people living in America finding themselves unable to make ends meet, for themselves in the competitive, through no fault of themselves.…

    • 68 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The time of the reconstruction era was full of new advancements to the industrial revolution many immigrants traveled from their homes of poverty and poor conditions to experience a better life for their families. The dream of the immigrants was that of achieving the successes of their dreams. Instead what the immigrants found was that of a vicious cycle of poverty.…

    • 648 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Did you know that the lifetime income of families headed by individuals with a bachelor's degree will be about $1.6 million more than the incomes of families headed by those with a high-school diploma, according to the Postsecondary Education Opportunity Research Letter. The U.S. Census Bureau tells us that in 1999, average income for a male age 25 or over who holds a bachelor's degree was about…

    • 1720 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    The cycle of poverty and systemic destruction of families is passed on through generations. This cycle is embedded in our society and is often times overlooked. This cycle is difficult to break; however, it is possible through the youth. Beginning with the youth would ultimately provide hope even when the system has been against them for so long. The cycle of poverty is defined as a long period of time where poor families are economically challenged for generations because they have very little access to necessities, such as education and money.…

    • 1448 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Poverty can be defined by the necessities and amenities that one does not have in their life. Due to the expectations created by our society, we have a tendency to judge others based on the clothes they wear or the cars they drive, and we automatically assume that those who cannot afford these luxuries are either uneducated, unskilled or a combination of both. We completely disregard the fact that not all people have control of their financial stability and that anything can damage their current state of wealth. Even the wealthiest of families can find themselves making their way to the bottom due to an unfortunate tragedy such as a death in the family or being laid off from a job, both of which are aspects that cannot be predicted or prevented, and the only thing families can do is accept it. The American Myth claims that someone from the humblest of beginnings can achieve success, but this statement could not be more false. Although a major cause of poverty is financial trouble, a key component that factors in is how the past affects the future. Those who come from troubled beginnings often lead a life of poor behavior and bad decision making skills. Some even work their lives away and still continue to struggle financially, mainly because they had no foundation to build upon due to the fact that they had to start from the absolute bottom.…

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Poverty In America Essay

    • 589 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Poverty is a big problem in the Americas. In 2010, 15.1% of all citizens were below the poverty line- and people aren’t magically getting wealthier. A question has been rising: Are people able to change their social and financial status? Is it fixed, or changeable, or somewhere in between? It all depends on how willing a person is to try to get out of poverty. If one sits around and does nothing but cry about how poor they are, they will not be as successful as someone who keeps their head up looking for opportunities. In conclusion, some people can move up in status, while some can’t.…

    • 589 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Poverty in America

    • 842 Words
    • 4 Pages

    It's hard to believe in a country as wealthy as the United States, that we have the problem of poverty. Poverty has not become a recent problem of our nation. Legislators, scientists and those impoverished have long searched for the end of the poverty cycle. The fact is that poverty does seem to be an inherited trait. Almost as if we are living in a caste system, unable to move up and out of our class. One of the main factors contributing to poverty is education, or the lack of education.…

    • 842 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thinking about many issues in today’s society, there are many reasons an individual would drop out of school such as pregnancy, family concerns, and individual reasons. Most people know that education is important however, there can be many circumstances and/or situations that could prevent a person to drop out of school. One reason that came to mind was pregnancy. With me being a mother, I know the hardships and the problems that came come about after having a child. If a parent does not have a good support system as well as some financial help, then this could cause a parent to drop out of school to take care of their child. Another reason for a person to drop out of school would be family concerns. Meaning, if a person’s relative becomes sick and there is no other person to take care of them then one may drop out of school in order to take care of that relative. Another reason I feel that could cause a person to drop out of school is that the school is not addressing their needs or if the person feel being in school is not helping their situation. Some people have to have special attention or needs in school and if the school is not addressing them, then it could cause the person to fall behind in their studies. From all of these reasons, there are many effects that are created from a person dropping out of school. One effect is that it increases their chance of not being able to find a good job. Another effect for not attending school could be isolation. In other words, if a person does not graduate with their peers they may begin to think negative of themselves and then may isolate themselves from friends and family because they do not feel that they are “good enough.” Overall, there could be many more causes and effects of dropping out of school. I just chose to discuss the…

    • 343 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays