Cory Hager

Mrs. Connelly
English 261
12/6/2016

I believe poverty in the United states is not addressed widely as it should be. Poverty is
one of the biggest problems we are dealing with in our Nation. Poverty is general scarcity or the
state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or
destitution refers to the lack of means necessary to meet basic needs such as food, clothing and
shelter. Unfortunately, poverty is often an invisible problem. The voices of the poor are never
heard, and the rich seem to get richer. When it comes to race, according to Opposing Viewpoints
Online Collection, because white people are the largest racial group in the United States about 62
percent of the total population, according to 2014 estimates, the number of whites living in
poverty is greater than that of any other group. However, a much higher percentage of African
Americans than whites live in poverty. Poverty rates for minorities had reached historic lows in
year of 2000 for example, about 21 percent for Hispanic Americans and 22 percent for African
Americans. However, because of the recession of 2008, the numbers looked harsh, about 30
percent of Hispanic Americans lived in poverty, along with 33 percent of African Americans. By
the year 2011, these numbers continued to rise to 35 percent of African Americans and 33
percent of Hispanic Americans living in poverty. It is no wonder with all the economic hardships
affecting so many Americans, this has also influenced and has a direct impact with the education
of people.

Noted as the welfare capital of California is Tulare County . Despite the Countys
economic and agricultural wealth, over one in four are at risk for going hungry. Tulare County
has the highest percentage in the state of residents who are struggling to meet their most basic
needs. Of the county residents, 50 percent are on some form of public assistance, 52,000
households are receiving food stamps benefits and 85,000 families are receiving MediCal
benefits. The first cause of concerns is the cost of housing. Californias housing has not always
been at a high cost of living. The second cause is the lack of job skills of many people seeking
employment. Tulare County is known for having the worst education system. Tulare County
ranked the best and least educated of the 150 largest cities and metropolitan areas in the United
States has put the Visalia-Porterville metropolitan area at nearly the bottom of the list. In fact,
Tulare County, was ranked at 149, making it the second least-educated region or city. The public
school students from wealthy districts generate some of the best test scores, while students from
a low income sector tested low scores. There is a definite link between poverty and education.
The way to understand poverty has led to various theories about its causes. Some theories
focused on the individual characteristics and behavior of poor people, while others deal with the
social and economic conditions that lead to poverty. California has become the first state in the
nation to approve a statewide $15 minimum wage. According to opposing viewpoints online
collections stated The measure will raise the state's minimum wage to $10.50 in January and to
$11 in January 2018. It will then increase by an additional $1 per hour every year until it reaches
$15 in 2022. If, however, the state goes through an economic downturn or budget crisis, the
governor may choose to slow the implementation..
I think if we were serious about education, then our education discussion wouldnt be to
solely focus on targeting teachers and coming up with uncooperative plans to weaken traditional

public schools, but specifically directing their concerns with obstacles that lie in conflict with
the education of children such as, language barriers; learning disabilities, social/economic
hurdles and learning curriculum! It would be most important to focus on mounting a new war on
poverty and directly addressing the biggest education problem of all. In 2016, the minimum
wage in California went up to $10.00 an hour. I believe raising the minimum wage too fast could
have devastating effects on small businesses. Among most of those small businesses they may be
raising prices to the consumer, cutting employees hours or possibly laying off staff, or both to
make up for added labor costs. Once the employees have fewer than 35 hours per week, they will
lose their full-time benefits thus saving additional money for the small business owners.
California may be the first state to pass a $15 minimum wage and will also be the first state to
experience that repercussion of that decision good or bad.
The American dream is alive and well and this is the very reason why I returned back to
school and enrolled in college. It is great everyone in America has the freedom and opportunity
to experience work at a young age, however I prefer to work for more than minimum wage.
However, having this experience working for $10.00 an hour is invaluable lesson and teaches
you that there is so much more out in the real world that awaits you. The only limits you have
are the ones you placed on upon yourself. My motivation are the people in my life that have
impacted me the greatest. My parents, family members and teachers have all inspired me and
have seen great potential in my ability to succeed when I needed it the most.

http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/story/news/local/2015/07/22/working-poor-tulare-countypoverty-farmers-farmworkers-visalia-social-services/30515883/

[1] "Poverty." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2016. Opposing Viewpoints in
Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/PC3010999167/OVIC?u=cclc_sequoias&xid=8b84bbb8.
Accessed 4 Dec. 2016

"California is first state to approve $15 minimum wage." CNN Wire, 1 Apr. 2016. Opposing
ViewpointsinContext,link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A447996298/OVIC?
u=cclc_sequoias&xid=f05164ab. Accessed 5 Dec. 2016.