Shipler includes a story of a woman named Christie. I believe she represents the working woman in our society. Her story in my opinion is one of the most common on how the working people are living. As we discussed broken systems in class, it is depicted very well in this story. Christie works and makes a small amount that does not suffice, and this qualifies her for assistance such as the food stamp program. The problem with that is the amount she is given is low therefore she opts for junk food as it is of much lower price, so her priorities were questionable. However, if she would work more and have more income she would fall out of the bracket for government assistance, and therefore still struggle, perhaps more. This depicts how the system is built so the poor stay poor. This is one of the topics that angers many such as myself. As a college student looking for financial aid, I can relate to the failure of the system, one is declined when working and when not working. These programs were designed to aid those in need yet it fails majority of the time.
Shipler, D. K. (2004). The working poor: Invisible in America. New York: Knopf.
No comments:
Post a Comment