I am standing in line at the grocery store, as usual I’m running behind. There is only two people in front of me with only a few items, so I know it could not possibly take that long. The second lady in line has a half gallon of milk, a loft of bread, and some bananas and it is finally her turn to pay. She lays down her items and digs around in her purse for her wallet. She dumps the change out of her pocketbook into her hand and is counting all her change. She is a dollar short and it going to have to put back the loft of bread, there are now three other people behind me and she turns around and apologizes to everyone. But every person, including me, are furious because we are all in a hurry. Everyone in line is drawling the same conclusion about this young woman, in fact everyone in the world is thinking it, she must be in poverty. According to the United States Census Bureau, there are around 40.6 million people who deal with poverty every day, so why as citizens why do we believe so many wild myths about so many Americans. (Fontenot, Kollar, and Semega)
The first myth is that citizens in poverty abuse drugs and alcohol. Most American citizens that are above the poverty line think that if people who are poor would stop buying drugs and liquor than they would have money to pay the bills, and they wouldn’t be broke. But that is not the truth because according to “Economic Status and Drug,” drug use has very little to do with wealth. People who are poor are more common to abuse drugs, however the two are not directly related. For example, if a father that has five children comes home after working a twelve-hour shift and is tired and overwhelmed; he might get drunk to take his mind off it, this does not mean he is in poverty for doing so. This is influenced by environmental factors, not because of his financial state.
My second myth is that poor people are lazy. Just because a person or persons are unemployed does not make them lazy, they could have previously been laid off or have a medical disability that is not visible. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, more than 10.5 million people in poverty formed the “working poor” in the United States in 2010. This means that they were in the labor force for at least 27 weeks. (“U.S. Poverty Myths”). The majority of people in poverty work full time jobs, right after high school they immediately go into the workforce, making minimum wage. If they work forty hours a week at the rate of $7.25, that is $290.00, but that is before taxes are taken out. When life really does hit that won’t feed your family, pay all the bills, and provide adequate care for you and your family. So although it seems like they are lazy, in reality they work harder than most of the wealthy.
Lastly, those living in poverty just want to stay there. This is very untrue, people don’t want to constantly worry if they can pay their bills or feed their family. There is a difference between wanting to get assistance and wanting to stay poor. Millions of Americans move in and out of poverty over a lifetime. More than half the United States population will live in poverty at some point in their life before the age of 65. (Urban Institute, 2010)
So next time that you are standing in the grocery line and they are paying with the few dollars they have left to their name or the next time someone needs help finding a job, offer a helping hand. Do not judge them because you don’t really know what they are going through. Maybe even you hear someone at your school or work is struggling, offer them a helping hand. To inform more people about myths on poverty just try your best and correct them when you hear them stating false information. Always remember that poverty is a very important issue and is never going to disappear, so try your best to educate yourself and others around you.
Work Cited
“Economic Status and Abuse.” Dual Diagnosis, www.dualdiagnosis.org/drug-addiction/economic-status/. Accessed 19 Sept. 2017.
Semega, Jessica L. Fontenot, Kayla R., and Kollar, Melissa A. “Library.” Income and Poverty in the United States: 2016, 12 Sept. 2017, www.census.gov/library/publications/2017/demo/p60-259.html. Accessed 19 Sept. 2017
“U.S. Poverty Myths.” World Vision U.S. Programs, www.worldvisionusprograms.org/us_poverty_myths.php. Accessed 19 Sept. 2017.