Why is there still poverty in America?

00:10:07
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5i45h76ioHY

Resumen

TLDRThe video examines the current state of poverty in America, particularly in affluent areas where families struggle to afford basic necessities like diapers. It highlights the changing nature of poverty, with more individuals living in suburban areas and the lack of adequate government support. The impact of poverty on children is emphasized, showing that one in six children in America is poor. The video discusses historical efforts to combat poverty, such as the programs initiated in the 1960s, and compares the effectiveness of America's safety net to those in other wealthy countries. It advocates for cash benefits as a potential solution to alleviate poverty and stresses the political challenges in addressing these issues.

Para llevar

  • 💔 Many families in affluent areas struggle to afford diapers.
  • 📉 Almost 40 million Americans live in poverty today.
  • 🏘️ Suburban poverty is on the rise, with more poor people living in suburbs than cities.
  • 💡 Safety net programs in America are often inadequate and restrictive.
  • 👶 One in six children in America lives in poverty.
  • 🇺🇸 Historical efforts to combat poverty began in the 1960s with President Johnson's initiatives.
  • 💰 Cash benefits have proven effective in reducing poverty in other countries.
  • 🗳️ Political engagement is crucial for addressing poverty issues.
  • 🤝 Community charities play a vital role in supporting families in need.
  • 🌍 Other wealthy countries have successfully reduced poverty, showing it's possible.

Cronología

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The video highlights the stark reality of poverty in America, particularly in affluent areas where families struggle to afford basic necessities like diapers. Despite being one of the richest countries, nearly 40 million Americans live in poverty, with a significant increase in suburban poverty. Local charities, like the diaper pantry established by Anne-Marie Mattis, are stepping in to fill the gaps left by inadequate government support, as many families face tough choices between rent, food, and essential items for their children.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:07

    The historical context of poverty in America is explored, tracing back to the 1960s when President Lyndon Johnson declared a war on poverty. While safety net programs have reduced poverty rates, America's approach is less effective compared to other wealthy nations. The video discusses the limitations of current safety net programs, which often do not cover essential items like diapers, and highlights the potential benefits of cash transfer programs, as seen in other countries. The narrative concludes with a call for political action to address poverty, emphasizing that it is possible to reduce poverty with the right policies.

Mapa mental

Vídeo de preguntas y respuestas

  • What is the current poverty rate in America?

    Almost 40 million people are living in poverty in America, which is nearly 1/8 of the population.

  • How much do diapers cost per month for a child?

    Diapers cost between seventy to eighty dollars a month per child.

  • What is the difference in poverty rates between urban and suburban areas?

    There are 3 million more poor people in suburbs than cities, yet suburban counties spend one-tenth as much to support poor residents.

  • What programs were launched to combat poverty in the 1960s?

    President Lyndon Johnson launched an array of programs, including Social Security and food stamps, to create a safety net for the poor.

  • How does America's child poverty rate compare to other countries?

    America has a remarkably high child poverty rate compared to other advanced democracies, with a significant difference after safety net programs are applied.

  • What is a proposed solution to reduce child poverty in America?

    Colorado Senator Michael Bennett has proposed monthly cash transfers of 300 dollars for each American child.

  • Why do safety net programs in America struggle to address poverty effectively?

    Many safety net programs are restrictive and do not cover essential items like diapers, leading to bureaucratic challenges for those in need.

  • What is the impact of living in a poor neighborhood on children?

    Children living in poor neighborhoods face worse outcomes in education and exposure to crime compared to those in integrated neighborhoods.

  • What is the political challenge in addressing poverty in America?

    Poor people are less likely to vote, making their issues less prioritized in political agendas.

  • What is the overall message of the video?

    Poverty does not need to be inevitable; with the right political choices and resources, it is possible to reduce poverty.

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    whatever you think poverty today looks
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    like it probably doesn't look much like
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    this in one of the most affluent
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    counties in America people are queuing
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    for handouts of diapers morning do you
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    have your ID thank you we've had clients
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    come to us that have said I've rinsed
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    out a diaper and I've reused it I've
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    turned a diaper inside out and I've
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    reused it sometimes I've left my child
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    in a diaper for far longer than I should
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    have
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    there is no government support in
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    America to help pay for diapers and many
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    poor families struggle to afford them
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    America is the richest big country in
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    the world its unemployment rate couldn't
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    be much lower so why does it have so
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    many people living in poverty
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    [Music]
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    in America almost 40 million people are
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    living in poverty
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    that's nearly 1/8 of the population
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    living on less than $26,000 a year for a
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    family of four here's the thing though
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    poverty and absolute terms has actually
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    decreased in recent years but the nature
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    of poverty is changing and that change
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    is making it much harder to fight
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    poverty used to be more of an inner-city
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    phenomenon but as housing costs rocketed
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    poverty exploded in the suburbs now
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    there are 3 million more poor people in
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    suburbs than cities yet suburban
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    counties spend one-tenth as much to
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    support poor residents as urban counties
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    which is why some residents of Lake
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    County Illinois depend on charity
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    handouts for diapers our schedule for
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    the rest of the year so you can come
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    twice a month just not twice in the same
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    week
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    anne-marie mattis is a local mom she set
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    up the charity nine years ago in her
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    basement initially she distributed
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    secondhand children's clothes to poor
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    families but soon she found there was an
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    overwhelming need for diapers diapers
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    cost seventy to eighty dollars a month
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    per child so that's an expense that many
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    many families struggle to afford
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    you're welcome people are faced with you
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    know not only diaper need bought but
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    hunger homelessness it's very prevalent
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    even here in what's considered a a
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    wealthier community all right you're
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    outside have a good day
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    [Music]
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    Xavier has been using the diaper pantry
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    for the last few months for her it's a
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    lifeline our budget goes on rent and
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    food anything that's not covered by
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    health insurance let me take this shirt
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    off you got another one off clothing is
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    a big thing for five kids yes program
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    they help out a lot with healthy food
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    then you can get some vouchers with them
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    beans cheese milk poverty in America is
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    becoming more concentrated we know that
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    the effect of being poor and living in a
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    poor neighborhood is much worse than
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    being poor and living in an integrated
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    neighborhood especially for children in
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    terms of the kind of school that they go
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    to or their exposure to crime and it's
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    children who are affected the most one
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    child in every six in America is poor I
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    see other families in there around and
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    joined us and there at the mall or there
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    at these events my kids acts enough I
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    have to keep saying I can't we can't how
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    did it come to this to understand you
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    need to go back to the 1960s
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    [Music]
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    President Lyndon Johnson went on a
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    poverty tour of America and he was so
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    shocked by what he saw he launched an
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    ambitious plan and this administration
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    today here and now declares
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    unconditional war on poverty in America
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    that war involving an array of programs
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    designed to create a safety net many of
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    which still exist in some form today
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    these included expanding both the cash
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    benefit for the elderly called Social
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    Security as well as food stamps which
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    help poor families buy food and largely
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    they were successful if we look at the
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    data without the safety net programs
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    roughly the same number of Americans
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    would be as poor today as they were in
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    the 1960s but if you include the effect
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    of the safety net programs that number
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    comes right down
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    Eldar poverty in the 1950s was a huge
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    problem but along the way Social
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    Security hugely reduce the amount of
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    poverty among the elderly sounds good
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    but not if you compare America's efforts
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    with other wealthier countries before
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    the benefit of safety nets is applied
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    America's poverty rate is comparatively
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    low but with it included it's one of the
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    worst performing only slightly above
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    Costa Rica in part that's because
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    America's safety net programs have
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    tended to benefit the elderly more than
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    other groups like working age adults and
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    children those programs are not doing as
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    much as they might in a country like
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    Finland for example Finland has a child
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    poverty rate before taxes and transfers
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    that are on par with America and after
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    its safety net kicks in you cut that
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    down to about 3% I'm in America you
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    don't do that at all child poverty in
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    America is remarkably high for an
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    advanced developed democracy and you
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    have to ask yourself what is the future
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    of a society that doesn't invest in it
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    [Music]
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    the problem is food stamps for example
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    can only be spent on specific things
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    which doesn't always include the most
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    obvious items unlike Social Security for
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    the elderly whose recipients are handed
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    cash to do as they please
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    it's lunchtime and back at the pantry
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    it's been a very busy daddy we've given
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    out five thousand nine hundred and
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    twenty five diapers so far with an hour
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    and a half left to go since Anne Marie
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    started the charity she says they've
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    given out 1.2 million diapers and every
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    week more and more families are
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    registering the safety net programs that
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    exist in the United States in general do
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    not cover diapers and that's a common
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    misconception in the community
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    the problem is safety net programs are
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    targeted so that many people don't
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    qualify they are restrictive there are
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    behavioral conditions increasingly
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    attached to them and all of this can
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    lead to a bureaucratic nightmare of red
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    tape from which it's almost impossible
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    to escape in America there is an ongoing
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    debate about whether giving poor people
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    cash leads to dependency yet the
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    evidence from other countries shows that
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    cash benefits can really help dent
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    poverty since Canada implemented a child
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    benefit of a few hundred dollars a month
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    they have seen their child poverty
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    numbers declined by about a third it's
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    reasonable to expect that a program of
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    similar magnitude in America would also
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    generate the exact same effect one
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    candidate for the Democratic
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    presidential nomination has even made
  • 00:08:00
    this a central part of his campaign
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    [Applause]
  • 00:08:04
    Colorado Senator Michael Bennett has
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    proposed monthly cash transfers of 300
  • 00:08:09
    dollars for each American child as part
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    of wider proposals to help poor people
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    school kids all over this country
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    they're living at a time when we've got
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    the worst income inequality that we've
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    had in a hundred years you've probably
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    never heard of it which tells you a lot
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    about America's political appetite for
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    reducing poverty poor people are much
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    less likely to vote so their issues are
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    rarely vote winners if you're working
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    two jobs and trying to make sure your
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    kids are walking safely to school in a
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    gang-infested neighborhood are you going
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    to the block party for your member of
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    Congress and making a campaign donation
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    so that he or she will listen to you
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    the pantries closing for the day for the
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    families who use it poverty does not
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    need to be inevitable there is a way out
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    other countries around the world have
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    done it it's really possible presuming
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    you're a wealthy country with the
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    resources and you have a reasonably
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    strong economy the choice is a political
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    one I know that it's something better
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    coming and then we'll look back on in
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    like we got through it we're strong
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    we're gonna be stronger because of it
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    I'm Anna the director of this film if
  • 00:09:34
    you'd like to see more and the journey
  • 00:09:35
    that brought us to the diaper pantry you
  • 00:09:38
    can watch the story behind American
  • 00:09:40
    poverty by clicking on the link opposite
  • 00:09:42
    the other link will take you to some of
  • 00:09:44
    the resources that we use when we were
  • 00:09:46
    researching this film including other
  • 00:09:48
    exclusive material don't forget to
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    subscribe so you can see all of our
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    latest releases and if you hit the bell
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    you
Etiquetas
  • poverty
  • diapers
  • safety net
  • child poverty
  • government support
  • suburban poverty
  • cash benefits
  • political challenges
  • affluent areas
  • community support