Stereotypes of Poverty

Jermaine M. Harper

Monique Williams

English 1A

22 December 2013

Stereotypes of Poverty

     The Occupy Movement was to shed light on the problems the rich put on the rest of us, inequalities within the economy and income in the United States. The movement began on 17 September 2011 as Occupy Wall Street in in New York City. “Protest groups are groups of people who have united to collectively object to a policy or course of action taken by an authority, such as a federal or state government. U.S. history is replete with examples of protest groups and their efforts” (Woodard 231). Freedom of speech is what keeps the United States a democracy. If not for protest groups as the Occupy Movement many disparaging inequalities in America would be the mundane within society. Resources from Smiley, Tavis, and Cornel West. The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto will be used to prove falsely that impoverished peoples are lazy, financially irresponsible and are always on drugs. Poverty is the new Civil rights battle, a battle of the twenty-first century to not ignore. There are many marginalized ethnic groups affected by poverty today. To bring justice and equality to 

every American, which the U.S. Constitution declares; we must fight the war on poverty. If the elite one percent were truly American, they would adhere to the ideologies of the U.S. Constitution. By not associating one’s self with being poor and character flawed judgment now passed on the impoverished so one sees themselves as better and above. The one percent prospers due to the ninety-nine percent’s individualism and passivity.

       People view the impoverished as financially irresponsible. They splurge their money on ridiculous items and do not save for their future.  They should try hard to get a job and do something with their

lives. One cannot save when most jobs pay only minimum wage or people can only find part time

work. In an arduous economy this is all easier said than done. "Everyone has the right to a standard of

living adequate…in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age, or other lack

of livelihood" (S&W 192). No matter the economic societal situation of the United States no one should

have to be impoverished and resort to homelessness. Government services are a must in our society if

their is a massively severe economical down fall their is a safety net that Americans can rely on. A

safety net placed for all Americans and not only of the impoverished.  

All impoverished people are on drugs. They are poor, have no food and no job all because of drug

use. Many people turn to drugs to numb the pain from having no job, no food and therefore are poor.

"If you go out now to get a job, a low-wage job around $8, $9 an hour…all the questions are going to

be whether you like to steal, whether you like to sell cocaine in the break room, things like that. There

is the idea that if you are poor, there's something wrong with you, and you should probably end up

incarcerated" (S&W 78). Grave circumstances and situations happen to people on a daily. Identity theft

puts hundreds of thousands of Americans in poverty every year. People are losing jobs and careers

every month left and right due to de-industrialization in America but nothing is wrong with them and

they will not be incarcerated. We as "true" Americans must do away with characterizations of poverty

stereotypes.

Many impoverished people are characterized by poverty stereotypes. Stereotypes must be

demolished to bring equality to the impoverished. People being active, living examples to change the

lazy poverty stereotypes. Have an individual change provide personal work at your home. Die to

oneself, be a volunteer at a rehabilitation or AA clinic. "The end of poverty in America demands that

we all change how we talk about, think about, feel about, and, more importantly, do something about

it" (S&W 176). We as Americans must lead as an example of perseverance, determination and

gratification. We must be more hospitable and open to having someone in need of financial funds to

help around their home to make ends meet. We must walk a day in the shoes of an addict before

prejudging them and die to oneself. We as human beings must understand situations and circumstances

are very different from one person to the next but at the end of the day we are "all human beings".

No one is better than the next person our situations and circumstances may be different but we are

all on the path in this world for a fulfilling life. Prove falsely that impoverished peoples are lazy, financially irresponsible and are always on drugs. By not associating one’s self with being poor and character flawed judgment now passed on the impoverished so one sees themselves as better and above. The one percent prospers due to the ninety-nine percent’s individualism and passivity. We as humans must be part of the solution to the greater problem. The poor need social security, welfare and

other government assistance which the rich refute against such services because they refuse to see them

as a common good. Currently Mexican Americans and other impoverished minorities are used for

cheap labor. It is a form of capital violence, meaning minorities has no choice but to work in factories

under poor working conditions. The rich know what they are doing they strategies and setup their game

pieces in in order to win prosperity for themselves. A brilliantly designed system to keep the poor

consistently impoverished and from prospering in their lives.