The Rich and the Poor and Who Deserves What

March 4th 2010

I've been waiting the last few days for something to inspire an entry not related to my every day life. I
was sitting in class and wasting time by reading through recent postings and found one titled "here's how to solve poverty" written by a 20 year old female. Hey, i thought, i'm a 20 year old female too! I wanted to find out what another 20 year old female thought about poverty.

Parts of what I read in that entry seriously made my blood boil.

I'm a social welfare major, hoping soon to get into the school of social work and a title IVE child welfare training program. So i have taken A LOT of classes that have discussed welfare, poverty, racisim, govermental programs etc. I wish my mind were a complete sponge so I could spit out the statistics and facts I have learned in these classes as soon as I need to. But I often need to go back and re-read my notes and properly gather my thoughts before I debate the other side.

I think the number one thing that bothers me about poverty is that middle and upper class people often think the poor are lazy, and if they tried hard enough, they could be wealthy, or at least middle class. Apparently people think that rags to riches stories are everywhere. Poor people should just pull themselves up by their bootstraps and stop complaining and get their shit together.

American Ideology revolves around the following 3 concepts. 1. Self Reliance (you can get things done by yourself) 2. Equal-opportunity (everyone has it) and 3. Meritocracy (theose who work hard are rewarded)

For the people who believe in those concepts, I ask the following:

1. are you white?
2. are you male? (though this is slightly less important)
3. were you born into the middle/upper class?
4. did you grow up in a decent neighborhood, with competent schools?
5. Have you ever had a serious medical issue arise and had insurance to cover the costs?

Ever heard of social stratification?

Studies have proven that the system of stratification individuals are born into has a great effect on their life chances. Life chances are opporutnities people have to acquire social resources. To illustrate this concept, 60% of the survivors on the Titanic were upper class. 36% were middle class, and a mere 26% were lower class. Does that mean that the lower class people just didn't try hard enough to get off the boat?

Studies have also proven that stratification carries over from on generation to the next. The social class one is born into is a significant predictor of class in adulthood. If you were born into poverty, you're most likely to live in poverty the rest of your life. If you were born into upper-class, you are most likely to live the rest of your life in the upper class.

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD. there just ISN'T.

How can you say a white, male child who grows up in an, upper-class household, who goes to private school, gets to take vacations and trips is on the same playing field as a black, female child who grows up in poverty, in a dangerous neighborhood, with poor schools and underqualified teachers?

Is it through either of their own efforts that they were born into the specific situation they were? No. They got what they got.

And I get it. Life isn't fair. It's not the rich person's fault that the poor person was born into poverty. But one can AT LEAST acknowledge the fact that there isn't equality and RESPECT the poor for the hardworking, resilient, and good people the majority of them are. If you aren't poor, you don't know what the poor go through.How can anyone say that white collar jobs are more difficult than blue collar jobs. Difficult in what way? You don't know the double shifts they work, the blood, sweat and tears that go into their manual labor jobs with little thanks, the pain they feel from the hard labor that they numb with OTC dugs because they can't afford the perscriptions for their conditions, the humiliation they feel as they tell their children there won't be any dinner tonight, or the feeling of failure they feel when they apply for welfare, something they thought they would always be able to get by without.

Education. WHEN YOU ARE POOR. IT IS VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY DIFFICULT TO JUST ENROLL AS A STUDENT AT A COLLEGE. assuming you have a high school diploma already. Yes, they can get financial aid and take out loans (if they're lucky). Do you know how long it takes to get a degree? 2 years if you're a full time student at most tech colleges. And where are you supposed to earn money if you have rent to pay? If you have a car? Health insurance? Utilities and personal care items? Food? Chlid care if applicable? If one is already working 2 jobs to make ends meet, where exactly is the time in their schedule to go to school?

In the entry that I read this afternoon it was stated somewhere that poor people just think they are entitled to a middle class life. What I want to know, is what makes the middle and upper class people think they are entitled to a life outside of poverty? Did you work to become white? Did you work to move to a good neighborhood with a good school when you were a kid? Did you work to choose your parents? Did you do ALL of the work to get to where you are? And what about the people who do all of the work and fall short because of luck?

It's not about entitlement. Ask any person living in poverty what they think they're entitled to. You may be surprised by the answer.