Definition of POVERTY1a : the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions Everyone understands the word poverty when it is defined by something like Merriam Webster's dictionary as stated above. But how many really understand what poverty is? Let's do a little activity to see how you rate your knowledge: 1-What time of night do the restaurants in your area throw out the food for the day in the dumpster? 2-Do you know how to apply for all the varied assistance from the state, and what documents are needed? 3-Why are the students in school that are from the poorest families and live in the roughest communities the ones that are the hardest to maintain in class? 4-Do you know what Dumpster Diving is and how it will benefit your family? 5-Do you know how to move in 24 hours and not leave a trace? 6-You have a family of 5 children ranging from 2 to 16 and yourself. You have $5, how do you feed them for the next 2 days? 7-How do you lie to someone and convince them what you are saying is the truth? 8-Do you know where the drug dealers are in the area to either avoid with your kids, or make contact with if you need something? 9-Do you know how to enroll your kids in school with out proper documentation? 10-Why is it that students that live in poverty just do not seem to care about their education? 11-What else besides food can you get with your food stamps and how? 12-Why are the sneakers wrapped around the power line? 13-What do the letters CK, BK stand for and why are they sprayed on a building? 14-How do the gangs in an area communicate? 15-What gangs are active in your region? If you know and understand the answer to these questions--then you know and understand poverty. If you do not know and understand the answer to these questions-then you really do not have a clue about what a person who lives in the poverty area lives like. There is a gap between the need of the housing landlords that rent the Section 8 housing wanting their home maintained in a responsible fashion and the residents who rent them. From the Landlords perspective, and rightfully so, they want their home maintained in a manner that will not destroy the property in any manner. From the participants viewpoint, they just simply want people off their back so they can try to figure out how to eat or feed the kids today. It is a large gap that needs to be eliminated. In doing so, both parties will become happy, satisfied and productive. But, how does one do this? To begin with, one must understand the human mind and how it operates. Through out history there has not been anyone who understood the human mind, how it operates and the motivation of people better than Abraham Maslow. Maslow is world renowned for his Hierarchy of Needs concept. Simply stated, humans have very basic needs that must be before they can progress onward in the development of life. If one's needs are not met on any given level, they will not progress forward to the next step. This is a very simplistic explanation of what the Culture of Poverty is all about--a lack of getting those needs met. How do we eliminate the problems? Meet the needs! |
For a more complete understanding of Maslow's Hierarchy of needs and its impact on changing lives-please view the link provided or watch the video.
After one gains an understanding of the development of the human mind with Maslow's Hierarchy, then they can move forward to a plan of action in educating those in need.
It is recommended that to bridge the gap between the landlords and the participants of Section 8 Housing an online education program be mandated for all participants that will teach them what they need to know to move up the ladder of not only Maslow-but the ladder of success as well!
