“The Chilling truth is that his story could have been mine, the tragedy is that my story could have been his”. This was a quote from the author Wes Moore about the lives of both Wes Moores. The author Wes Moore was brought up with significantly more support than the other Wes Moore, the support that eventually will change his life for the better. The author Wes Moore is currently a free man with a prosperous life while the other Wes Moore is in Jessup Prison, serving a life sentence. The cause for this was the support each man had when they were being brought up in life. The author Wes Moore had a superior upbringing than the other Wes Moore due to having more support from his family, friends, and community.
In Tony Went to the Bodega but He Didn’t Buy Anything, Martín Espada shows how culture shock can affect someone who is a minority. The poem starts off by telling us “Tony’s father left the family” (line 1) and immediately I felt sad for Tony, but then it goes on to say that he was a boy who was “nine years old who had to find work” (lines 4-5). Not only does Tony not have a father figure growing up, but due to his financial situation, he now must find a job despite being so young. This is not uncommon because race and socio-economic status are tied, so many minorities have to find jobs at younger, even illegal ages to support their families.
In the 1960s, according to American Civil Liberties Union, 20% of the United States population were homeless, and shunned from the rest of society because of stereotypes. The Glass Castle is a memoir written by Jeannette Walls, to tell the story of her life growing up as a homeless child with an alcoholic father and an artistic mother. Her memoir is a story about relationships, and how the outside world influences them. In The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls, homeless people are marginalized as uneducated, reckless and mentally unstable.
In her personal narrative, Bonnie Jo Campbell describes to her readers the time she sold manure the summer after school let out. At first, Campbell was embarrassed to deliver manure; however, over time, she began to realize selling manure was beneficial for both her and the customer, and quite fulfilling as well. Campbell (1996) states, “Within about a week, however, I began to see the absurdity of our situation as liberating” (p. 30). She begun to understand that selling manure was an honest vocation as opposed to her first thoughts. Not only is manure delivering effectual, but also are the other countless overlooked jobs often seen as low class citizen jobs. Through her story, she puts job stereotypes to rest and even glorifies them.
Ehrenreich goes on to explain on how the book that became a best seller caused so many bad stereotypes on the poor that by the Reagan era poverty was seen as “bad attitudes” and “faulty lifestyles” and not by the lack of jobs or low paying jobs. And they also viewed the poor as “Dissolute, promiscuous, prone to addiction and crime, unable to “defer gratification,” or possibly even set an alarm clock.” At the end of the article she concludes that poverty is just a shortage of money and not a character
In Chicago, and all over the nation, the effects of gang activity have been displayed, specifically in low income and poverty torn communities. Poverty is measured depending on a family’s annual income and determining if the amount falls below the poverty threshold for the family’s size. If the annual income does fall below the threshold, then the family and every individual in it is considered to be in poverty. Gang activity is more visible in the areas specifically in major cities similar to Chicago where poverty is a commonality in communities. although gangs might add structure in order where the government fails to do so in the projects and and similar low income communities the negative effects such as the distribution of drugs, violence,
In A Framework for Understanding Poverty, Ruby Payne try’s to explain the behaviors and barriers of three social classes: poverty, middle class, and wealth. Beyond the social class of poverty, it’s a breakdown of the elements of the classes and the ‘hidden rules’ each one has. She stresses that these hidden rules aren’t taught in businesses or schools, these of which function as the hidden rules of middle class. Payne states these hidden rules aren’t exactly natural, they’re learned, and as one grows up in a particular class those rules are set in place. She lists all the rules in each class, and the differences are striking. Neither group understands the other, but A Framework for Understanding Poverty does it’s best to put someone in the
Life constantly bombards us with series of twists and turns which we inevitably have to battle. In these times of struggle, we often look up into the light for small glimmers of hope that helps motivates us to push forwards. While we struggle, hope has always been by our side. In Stephen King’s novella, Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, and its film adaptation, directed by Frank Darabont, The Shawshank Redemption, the theme of hope is perpetuated through Red’s character. It tells a life story about Andy Dufresne, a life sentenced convict who proclaims his innocence, who is sent to Shawshank prison. As he slowly integrates with prison life, he meets another man called Ellis, also known as Red, who he gradually becomes best friends with.
John Singleton’s film, Boyz N the Hood, displays the challenging upbringing of adolescents who have to live with harsh conditions around not only their home but also their surrounding town. The film compares the differences between the lifestyles of Tre Styles and his friends’, Darren and Ricky Baker. Darren and Ricky are half-brothers who are nothing alike. Singleton demonstrates the importance of male leadership in a home in the ghetto of Los Angeles by comparing the difference between the lifestyles of Tre and his friends. While many adolescents in the hood have close friendships, some form close relationships by assembling gangs and create a world of violence due to alcohol abuse, which together ultimately breeds discrimination.
The novel, The American Way of Poverty: How the Other Half Still Lives by Sasha Abramsky is about how he traveled the United States meeting the poor. The stories he introduces in novel are articles among data-driven studies and critical investigations of government programs. Abramsky has composed an impressive book that both defines and advocates. He reaches across a varied range of concerns, involving education, housing and criminal justice, in a wide-ranging view of poverty 's sections. In considering results, it 's essential to understand how the different problems of poor families intermingle in mutual reinforcement. Sasha Abramsky brings the results of economic disparity out of the shadows and recommends ways for moving toward a
Many people claim that racism no longer exists; however, the minorities’ struggle with injustice is ubiquitous. In the “Anything Can Happen With Police Around”: Urban Youth Evaluate Strategies of Surveillance in Public Places,” Michelle Fine and his comrades were inspired to conduct a survey over one of the major social issues - how authority figures use a person’s racial identity as a key factor in determining how to enforce laws and how the surveillance is problematic in public space. In the beginning of the article, she used the existed survey reports to support and justify their purpose to perform this survey. The survey analyzed urban youth interactions with authority figures, comprising police, educators, social workers and security guards.
When we reflect on our life, we create a metaphorical puzzle. These puzzle pieces represent all of the small decisions we made. Inside of those decisions, also consists of other people and how they influenced our upbringings. When this puzzle is put together, all of these decisions create one big picture. Specifically, Wes Moore’s “puzzle” is more unfinished than most people 's, these pieces may not fit very well with other pieces, and they may never will. We may never know why Wes made some of the decisions he did, but there is one large section of the puzzle that is mostly together–this would be Wes Moore’s influence from drug abuse. The idea of drug abuse is frowned upon by other people.
Poverty is difficult to fully understand without experiencing it directly. Sociologist Matthew Desmond attempts to provide a different perspective on this issue through the lens of those struggling with poverty. This ethnography covers the lives of eight families and many others living in the College Mobile Home Park, a poverty-stricken area in Milwaukee, one of the poorest cities in the U.S.; Desmond lived there for one year, diligently taking notes and recording the experiences of the people he encountered. In Evicted, Matthew Desmond describes the interconnectedness of housing and poverty and highlights the exploitation of the poor through the scope of eviction. Throughout the book, he describes the factors contributing to the cyclical nature
many others in his area, however, was able to break free from the detrimental culture of the white poor. Through education and perseverance, he has come to write a memoir with the purpose of enlightening readers about the true lives of hillbillies. Vance’s ability to fluently utilize tone and diction contributes to the purpose of the memoir, for his vivid anecdotes allow the reader to experience the culture vicariously through him. The author also produces a cultural notion with respect to the American Dream; he employs that, contrary to popular belief, that dream can still be achieved today. This incorporation of culture, effective tone, and effective diction
In the book, When Work Disappears, William Julius Wilson focuses on how joblessness and poverty are caused within the urban area or society. Wilson concentrates not only on poverty or joblessness, but he also focuses on reasons why jobs are disappearing. Joblessness or urban joblessness would be considered one of the main focuses of this book. Wilson describes it as being one of many major problems that is often ignored. Wilson focuses on poverty within the city of Chicago, such as the inner-city ghettos. Not only did he focus on the city of Chicago, but he also focused on other cities with similar situations. Within the book, Wilson provides the audience with different reasons as to why there is poverty and joblessness within the urban area.