Economic Inequality In America Essay

Everyone knows what the word poverty means. It means poor, unable to buy the necessities to survive in today's world. We do not realize how easy it is for a person to fall into poverty: A lost job, a sudden illness, a death in the family or the endless cycle of being born into poverty and not knowing how to overcome it. There are so many children in poverty and a family's structure can effect the outcome. Most of the people who are at the poverty level need some type of help to overcome the obstacles. There are mane issues that deal with poverty and many things that can be done to stop it.

Poverty is a major issue that has worried America for years. America has worked extremely hard to end poverty,it still widely exists. There are some solutions to this world problem though such as food stamps, shelters, and obama care. It is important that while the challenges facing poverty are large, the solutions are feasible and can happen.

In the article “Rethinking the American poverty”, Mark Rank suggests the three major shifts that are required for a practical understanding of American poverty. First, it’s important to recognize that poverty affects us all because of two reasons. The first reason is that each year, the government has to spend a lot of money to solve the social problems associated with poverty. Poor people suffer from lack of health access, not having enough money to support their basic needs,…which create a huge burden on the government’s budget. The second explanation for us to care about poverty is that there is a strong chance at some point during life time, Americans would face poverty. The second shift is to realize that American poverty is largely the

The view that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer has been heard repeatedly in reference to America’s income inequality. Though ironic, it comes as no surprise that America, a continent that easily trumps other countries in terms of wealth would be affected by the issue of poverty at such high levels. While much has said regarding the poverty levels, many economists, educators and scholars feel that the income inequality in America may be the reason why it is difficult to live and maintain a middle class lifestyle or to rise out of poverty into the middle class in the current economic state. With this in mind, the only way America, has a chance of lessening or eliminating poverty altogether is by understanding how it exists.

The U.S. is among the richest countries in the world today, yet millions of people in America still live below the poverty level. The number of Americans living in poverty is increasing day by day as well as the number of children. Poverty in America has become a great threat to children’s wellbeing as they are affected emotionally, socially, and even in their school performance (Wood 720). Poverty in America is mainly caused by lack of jobs. Many people who live in poverty in the United States is due to lack of jobs and getting jobs with minimum wage. Another cause of poverty is due to the rise in the cost of living. Poverty exists in America despite the fact that is among the richest nations in the world.

“Poverty is the worst form of violence.” Mahatma Gandhi’s words still ring true in today’s society. Poverty is nothing to sweep under the rug or put on the back burner. While many statistics state that poverty is decreasing, other sources state the opposite. Poverty is a hot topic in the U.S., foreign countries, and speaks true about many genders, ethnic groups, and children.

Poverty has been an ongoing issue since the birth of this Nation. When one thinks of poverty the last people we think of are the ones closest to home. As children some are told “finish your dinner, there are starving kids in Africa”, but what about the starving children whom are in neighborhoods close to us? Poverty is everywhere, even the places that are thought of as wealthy. Poverty in America; a continuing issue.There are many different definitions of poverty. The United States Census Bureau states that

Wealth inequality in the United States is at an all-time high with the top 1% being as wealthy as the bottom 50% combined. All is not copacetic. Due to the recent presidential election, there is a divide between the nation’s two major parties and even a divide inside each party. There are school shootings happening all around the country and there is more money in politics than there should be. Despite all of the bad things going on, there is always hope for the United States. There is always hope for the United States of America because, throughout the course of history, it has been able to endure every single hardship thrown its way due to its strong foundation, the US Constitution.

Income inequality in the United States has been increasing gradually as from the 20th century where there was economic stability. It is estimated that around a quarter of the American worker population receives not more than $10 in an hour. Through this condition, it creates an income that is below what the federal poverty level demands. Those who receive low income include the fast food employees, cashiers, nurse's aides and many more. Other individuals get good payments which are above $10 per hour. Wealth inequality in America is quite common as there are those who are the major economic block and those who can’t afford even the three meals in a day. The social issues that income and wealth inequality might cause in the United States include poverty, household debts becoming high, high crime rates, no health insurance for the low-income families, high mobility rates, high crime rates and school dropouts.

The American economy has been in a constant rise since the economic decline earlier this decade and keeps on being the vigorous beast it was amid the twentieth century. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Economic Policy Institute concluded that the income wage hole between the wealthiest and the poorest one fifth of families is altogether more extensive than it was two decades prior. The middle class has not seen the advantages of this powerful American economy. The middle-income pay has stayed level at 44,389, an assume that spoke to a 3.8% diminishing from its top in 1999. In 2005, the median income, when adjusted for price level change, really declined, a pattern that has proceeded since 2001. Since the 1970s as the salary for the wealthiest 1% of Americans has multiplied, wages for middle class families have stayed even, however this is simply in the wake of including a second household income. Even workers with college degrees, who were once viewed as first class specialist, have witnessed this wage stagnation, as income of laborers with 4-year professional education fell 5.2% when adjusted for price level change from 2000 to 2004.

As we all may know or have come to assume. Poverty is an issue; an issue that may or may not ever go away. Why? Because it is a clinging, unrelenting issue that many spokespersons believe is caused by inequality in America. Equality means to be treated equally, especially when regarding things like status, rights, and opportunities. By inequality, i’m addressing and bringing in issues like income inequality, and those who don’t receive certain educational benefits that a rich or middle-class person can receive.

America was built off of the idea of civil liberties in which one is guaranteed freedoms that the government cannot abridge, either by law or by judicial interpretation, without due process. This idea was true for some, but for the rest was only granted throughout the struggles of which they had to endure to gain such rights. Our nation fought the English for our freedom and rights, but we gave those freedoms and rights back to only the white man. We as a nation continued to institute a policy of inequality; a society in which an individual that wasn’t white, wasn’t considered a human at all. The actualities of these founding’s would go against the origin of the nation’s foundation of equality and its language. This idea was implemented by

This review is formulated with scholarly sources and references based off of poverty in America. This disclosure is approached with a value free sociological approach, and it will give insight on the social causes of poverty and the effects it has on America. Poverty is a very controversial topic. Many will assume that people living in poverty are lazy, made bad life decisions, or that they are solely the reason for their predicament however, people living in poverty would argue that their are deeper issues for it. Poverty will be deeply explained and researched from both perspectives

The United States is the wealthiest nation in the world, but yet poverty remains prevalent. Childhood poverty affects every aspect of their life. “Poverty is not having income for basic needs, food, medical care or basic needs and housing” (Crosson-Tower, 2014, p. 59). Poverty is affecting thousands of Americans every day, and it isn 't sparing anyone of a particular race, age or gender, leaving people on welfare, and without homes, or transportation. Poverty is a crisis that deserves attention from everyone, and it has many faces that are often not recognized

Many Americans believe that America has one of the most powerful economies that is involved in the global market and the best average living standards. Since the creation of the United States it has been known as the land of endless opportunities, regardless of social or economic classes. Under this philosophy, all citizens should have equal rights and given equal opportunity to progress in the workforce. However many Americans are living full lives and do not have financial obstacles to get over. Even so, millions of Americans are still faced with poor living conditions and struggle with providing for their families basic needs. Whether Americans believe poverty and inequality exist in America exists or not, the authors in three different articles:” Culture of Success” by Brink Lindsey, “A Great Time to Be Alive?” by Matt Yglesias, and “Born Poor and Smart” by Angela Locke, and “The War Against the Poor Instead of Programs to End Poverty”by Herbert J. Gans, shared ideas on how to help fix the problems of the impoverished community and address the cause of the problem. The four articles also explain different biases that the impoverish have to endure everyday.