Student Essay on Reasons for Poverty in the United States

Reasons for Poverty in the United States

Summary:   Poverty continues to exist in the United States because it's a cycle: You are born into it, making it hard to get a job; without a job you can't pay for schooling, without a high school degree, you can't invest in a career; without a career, you can support your family; and by not being able to support your family you are making it harder for them to break out of poverty.

"Poverty is like punishment for a crime you didn't commit." -Eli Khamarov

Should this quote be taken seriously? Should the upper classes in the United States blame those born into poverty for their own misfortune? In this cause and affect essay, I will take you through the process of what we define as "poor" and how we are dealing with it.

There is no known pinpoint to what actually causes poverty, for it can be a number of things. You could be born into it, thus making it hard for you to get a job, without a job you wouldn't be able to pay for schooling, without a high school degree you wouldn't be able to invest in a career, without a career you wouldn't be able to support your family, and by not being able to support your family you are making it harder for them to break out of poverty. It is a never-ending cycle that is doomed to repeat itself.

The definition of poverty in the dictionary states poverty as "the state of being poor; lack of the means of providing material needs and comforts." (H.E.D.) People who are considered "poor" or "in poverty", are people who can not provide sufficient food, clothing or shelter for their families. Although there are far worse cases of poverty around the world, in the United States people who are either single parents or parents who work for minimum wage are considered poor. Even people do have food, clothing, shelter, and make more then minimum wage but can't afford luxury are people who are considered poor. Poverty is a major issue in the US. It is something that the country has been trying to solve for decades. Poverty tends to exist in concentrated areas (city slums, county areas, trailer parks, etc.), poor people are stuck living with other poor people. One of the reasons why it's hard for these people to get out of poverty is because there are so little jobs available to them in their area because of the high concentration of other poor people around them.

People in poverty might not be able to travel outside of their local community and find work elsewhere. Another reason why it's hard for families who are in poverty to find jobs is because of teens. Teens take jobs that those in poverty may need, and are capable of doing. Most teens look for jobs so they can make money and spend it on pleasure. Those same teens most likely still live with their parents, who can support them. For now, those teens don't need to make money to survive. "Competing with teens makes job opportunities a lot worse for those in poverty, because most can't speak English and do not have an education; which is frowned upon in most cases." (Wilson 127)

In an effort to lessen poverty, the government offers many social programs and aid to the poor (Medicaid, welfare, food stamps, etc.). Although these programs really help people to get out of poverty, it's not to keep them out. Most people fall back into poverty after getting out. I think that to keep these people out of poverty, the government should help and offer them careers, instead of shorter jobs. Another reason why poverty is still such an issue is in the US is because of the media. The media neglects tend to focus on poverty and famine in other countries rather than what is going on the US. There is an estimation of around 35 million people in poverty in the US, which is a far greater amount of people in poverty in those poorer countries. "Two hundred years ago, the idea that we could potentially achieve the end of poverty would have been unimaginable. Just about everybody was poor with the exception of a very small minority of royals and landed gentry." (Sachs)

In conclusion, I feel that poverty in the US will not end. Poverty in the US can only be slowed down, and the amount of people in poverty can only decrease by a little. I think that the assistance that the government is offering right now is a lot better then that in other countries. My call to action to you, the reader, is to work hard and better yourself so that you may never be in this situation. If there was any more help offered to the poor, the rise in government taxes will only cause more people to go into poverty.