Aint it amazing that if one utters anything in support of the poor in America, the labels come hailin' down.."socialist", "welfare queen", "un-American", "unpatriotic", "liberal"..& the list goes on. Being poor is taboo, a shameful, self-inflicted condition beyond serious reflection, a threat to the delusion of the United States of America as the land of opportunity, upward mobility, full democracy, equality and justice for all (to be fair, there was a time when there were ample opportunities to make a decent living before shit hit the fan over 30 years ago). Things have gotten so daffy that you can have presidential contenders saying things like, "Poor people have no money, no habit of work...They have no habit of showing up on Monday and staying all day or the concept of ’I do this and you give me cash,’ unless it’s illegal" (Newt Gingrich) and "I'm not concerned about the very poor"(Mitt Romney). I have to admit that I am quite disappointed that President Obama is not as vocal about the plight of the poor as he is with the middle class (many of whom are now poor as a result of the Great Recession or the Lesser Depression, take your pick).
Looking at the kids in this BBC documentary is a tearjerker. According to the Census Bureau, there are more children who now live in poverty than at any time since 1962 (currently at 16.4 million & rising). Equally remarkable is the epidemic of poverty which has body-slammed minorities really hard. The number of poor people in America hit a staggering 46 million in 2010. The African-American/Latino poverty rate jumped from 25% to 27% (whites jumped from 9.4% to 9.9%), according to Census data. You wouldn't know things were this bad if you're surrounded by people who are comfortably well off and live in a decent & safe community. Outside this bubble, the destruction of wealth in mostly nonwhite families borders on the catastrophic. The Pew Research Center reported that between 2005 and 2009, the household wealth of a typical black family took a terrible nosedive, plunging by 53%; for a typical Hispanic family, it was even worse, at 66%. For white middle-class households, losses on average totaled “only” 16%. Yet we find ourselves surrounded by morally depraved & intellectually inept m*f*ers who "argue" that it all boils down to personal responsibility & a good work ethic (they need a foot in that a**!).
There's no telling how this chilling tale will end. How is the devastation & deep wealth polarization which has been decades in the making and is a global phenomenon going to be reversed? With 50 million Americans without health care, and 46 million people living in poverty, it's hard for anyone to believe in anything politicians and business leaders have to say.
Alas, for every dark cloud there is a silver lining. It is indeed a blessing to have people/organizations that walk the walk & do what they can to help the least amongst us. Organizations such as the Jerimiah Program, Ascend, Grassroots Global Justice & Helping Hands Medical Mission (see video clip below) that do serious work amongst the most vulnerable populations no matter where they are, should be applauded. We all need to take note of the selfless actions of others & do what we can to help by whatever means.
(Thanks to Dr Suleika Just-Buddy Michel for sharing this photoshow of her mission to Haiti)
(***I have always tried to resist the temptation of calling people out on this site as it goes against my nature, but I'm going to make an exception here: Robert Rector from the Heritage Foundation (who is interviewed in the BBC documentary) is a blasted idiot. His sneering disregard for the poor is only matched by the 'facts' he pulls right out of his a**. It is educated fools like this who give advice to elected officials/ policymakers who in turn pollute our opinions/public discourse with their nonsense.)
:::MME:::
