Poverty in the United States, Research Paper Example

This paper addresses the situation with poverty, and the different ways in which the term “poverty” is defined.  It will cite celebrity anti-poverty advocates like Bono on his views about continuously striving to root out this terrible economic disease. Next the paper discusses the different programs that people in the poverty and low income brackets can get assistance. A review of the statistics that applied to the 2013 poverty rate in the United States are discussed to see what headways may or may not have been recently made in terms of poverty alleviation.  A review of various literature on this topic has been made and the results are synthesized in the body of this report.

Poverty is defined in terms of absolute, relative and extreme. This is a relatively theoretical exercise, arriving at a definition of poverty that will satisfy most and not offend many. The difference between extreme and absolute poverty is as follows when referring to the poverty line it is extreme poverty that is being referred to. It is the definition of what it takes to meet someone’s absolute needs like food and shelter, education, health care which will all be affected by where that person geographically resides (Vision of Earth). If someone lives in Antarctica or someone lives in the Sahara Desert then they will have different needs for survival.

To go further on this subject and expansion of the term extreme poverty is in order. It is the average approximate economic value that it takes $1 per day for a person and extreme poverty to live. The people in this category are just barely meeting the basic requirements to feed themselves. In the US, a $1 a day as calculated as extreme poverty by the World Bank.  While another World Bank has up this $1.5 in 2005 (Vision of Earth).

Moderate poverty gives the person one hand up from the person that is in extreme poverty because at least that person can have basic needs met, but they do not have any disposable income. For that reason they are unable to give their children a good education, live in an impoverished section in town.  Their lives will be a constant struggle as they become involved in an economic trap that they find hard to escape. The calculation that the World Bank uses for moderate poverty is $2 per day (Vision of Earth)   .

In a conference in Long Beach California on Tuesday, Bono of U2 fame applauded the number of people living in extreme poverty and that it had declined steadily (The Huffington Post). His trajectory was that by 2031 no one in the entire world would be living on less than a dollar day. That is certainly an upbeat outlook, however, he warned people not to inert in the situation because inertia would cause the war against poverty to begin to lose ground (The Huffington Post).

Bono noted that there are 11 million AIDS orphans that were dying from AIDS daily because the babies were not given access to the drugs at pharmacies (The Huffington Post). Rather than getting involved directly with charities, people should get involved directly with the pharmacies at the stores in their local area to help alleviate property. He said it is important to stand up for people’s dreams even if they cannot stand up for them themselves (The Huffington Post).

The Poverty Level is used in health and human service agencies to determine how much an individual or a family in need can get in assistance from the federal, state, local and charitable organizations.  If an individual or family is considered at the Poverty Level, that candidate is qualified to apply for assistance with food, emergency cash, and temporary housing (Poverties.org).

Low Income means that someone is making just enough that the individual is above the Poverty Level. This excludes those at the Low Income level to receive assistance from state, and federal authorities depending upon what the statutory income requirements are to receive assistance (Poverties.org).  Charitable organizations are typically a good place to get help for Low Income people.

The poverty rate was 14.5% in the US in 2013 (Bureau). The poverty rate change for children fell from 21.8% in 2012 to 19.9% in 2013 (Bureau). The poverty rate change for seniors did not significantly change. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 requires that all new hires submit information to employers so that the employers can report the information to the designated state agency in charge of collecting child support (Acf.hhs.gov). It forced all employers to submit new hire reports that were accurate and legible to the state within 20 days of the date of hire. The report shall be on a W-4 form (Acf.hhs.gov).

The Welfare system as originally set in place was becoming a way of life for some people and families in Massachusetts. Making it transitional showed that it was not a program one could anticipate or plan to be on for the rest of his/her life that in fact the purpose of the assistance was to get that person back to a sustainable income (Acf.hhs.gov).

One program that low-income people are eligible for is assistance with unemployment benefits.  If a person has worked at least thirteen weeks for one continuous employer, and gets suddenly dismissed for no apparent reason, that employee is eligible for a percentage of the compensation that he/she made on the job.  The limitations of this service are that one must work thirteen weeks for an employer in order to receive benefits.

When doing research for the beginning of this project, the main question that was asked was the definition of the different forms of poverty. As the paper went into the three different types of poverty, a clear picture was shown of the breakdown of the different levels of poverty that people are partition to in the United States. There is a fine line between the different stages of poverty, and it is interesting to understand that help from state or federal agencies can depend upon whether or not someone is above the poverty line or not. The paper looked into unemployment resources for employees that have been unfairly suspended through no fault of their own, and who find themselves without proper finances to support their family. That is why it is important to have a safety net someplace so that citizens like these do not fall through the cracks and that employers are held accountable for dismissing someone with no reason.

There can be a legitimate conclusion to be made that the literature used for this project shows the many shades of poverty, and that is extremely helpful for researchers. This is particularly helpful for those who are in social service roles because the conclusions drawn from the study of this project will help direct resources to those in need.

References

Acf.hhs.gov,. ‘The Personal Responsibility And Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act Of 1996 |Office Of Child Support Enforcement | Administration For Children And Families’. N.p., 1996. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.

Bureau, US. ‘Income And Poverty In The United States: 2013’. Census.gov. N.p., 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.

Poverties.org,. ‘Relative Vs. Absolute Poverty: Why And How Do We Measure Poverty?’. N.p., 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.

The Huffington Post,. ‘Bono At Ted: Extreme Poverty Will Be Wiped Out By 2030’. N.p., 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.

Vision of Earth,. ‘How Do We Define Poverty?’. N.p., 2010. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.