Blog Action Day 2008: Poverty in America

In 2005 the census bureau calculated 37 million people living in poverty. Within the past three years you would assume that with this poor economy and raise of gas prices it has increased, and indeed it has. "For most Americans, the word "poverty" suggests destitution: an inability to provide a family with nutritious food, clothing, and reasonable shelter. But only a small number of the 37 million per­sons classified as "poor" by the Census Bureau fit that description. While real material hardship certainly does occur, it is limited in scope and severity. Most of America's "poor" live in material conditions that would be judged as comfortable or well-off just a few generations ago. Today, the expenditures per person of the lowest-income one-fifth of house­holds equal those of the median American household in the early 1970s, after adjusting for inflation." This was taken from an article on America's Poverty. After reading this article it is safe to assume not all of America's poverty is living in bad conditions. There was an abundance of examples that show that poor people have a place to live, have a car, have air-conditioning, and experience slight food shortages. I'm not saying that its not a problem because it is especially when it comes to their health. However, after reading this article I'm a bit confused as to how to feel about it. Compared to Africa, even the poorest of Americans are living way better than Africans.