Taylor’s Campaign documentary is an inspiring film that tells the story of a candidate running for city council and striving to help a local community address the issues of homelessness affecting the city of Santa Monica, Ca.  Taylor is a great example of a social advocate who understands the hardships of homeless people experience while trying to survive and maintain stability in a city where no rights are honored to those that lack social services and employment.  After watching this film it has inspired me to see life differently in different perspectives and value what I have.  Taylor took us to an adventure to open up our hearts and minds of people living on the streets, and see the reality of the disadvantages homeless people face daily.

One of the moments which struck me deeply was when one of the ladies from the homeless community was crying in desperation after being kicked out their space saying, “where are we gonna go, we don’t have nowhere to go..”.  These people have made their space a sustaining habitat, where they have adjusted to the streets, and work to maintain their habits and surviving possessions.  However, public policies reinforce by the city council discourages homelessness, therefore it continues to be controversial issue that has people like Taylor fighting for social changes in the communities. In my opinion, instead of encouraging policies to deter homelessness, the cities need to address the causes of homelessness and provide necessary resources for the people in need.

Recently for another class I have been reading the book Half The Sky, by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. The book basically highlights the heartbreaking experiences of women on a global scale. It addresses sex trafficking, poverty, abuse, and cultural and religious practices that are harmful, degrading, and dehumanizing towards women. It follows specific women and tells their stories of overcoming obstacles that in nearly each story seem to big and too horrible to be real. In so many ways it connected to the book that I was assigned for our group projects in this class called, Homeless Mothers, by Deborah Connolly. This book specifically addressed the issues that white women in poverty in the United States face as mothers. It covers addiction, abuse, poverty, childhood trauma of nearly every form, and all of the ways in which those aspects of these women’s lived experiences have effected their roles and obligations as mothers. I saw so many parallels between the women describes in both books. Of course differences existed due to cultural, societal, religious etc. differences, however there were themes present in these women’s lives and emotions that connected quite frequently. One of the most apparent similarity was the ways that these women care for their children. At times their legitimate parenting tactics are not always agreeable, yet, they all express this extreme desire to provide a “clean slate” and opportunities for their children that they didn’t have. Regardless of how they felt on an individual level about motherhood, these women for the most part seemed committed to making sure that their children did not have to live as they had. While the women in Half The Sky were debatably more motivated and in some cases seemingly more invested in overcoming their situations, I was overall incredibly inspired and impressed by the overall resilience of women who are faced with such appalling life circumstances. I was also shocked at how often financial insecurity played a role in the cause for these women falling into these situations. My perceptions of motherhood have changed significantly after reading both books and I encourage everyone to at least read one of them. It is truly unbelievable what women are capable of overcoming even when they have nothing. I am excited to continue reading and learning about poverty and homelessness because it seems to be so closely related and responsible for so many of the ways in which people struggle and suffer today.

“You grab a bit of connection wherever you can to survive. You have no idea how strong the pull to feel worthwhile is.” Says activist Linda Tirado in her essay “This is Why Poor People’s Bad Decisions Make Sense.” As humans we all share the same needs such as safety, love, care, support, shelter, food and purpose. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, given equal rights and opportunities to succeed. Instead, “Individuals are born into a society that neither treats people nor distributes opportunity equally.” Stated the Prevention Institute, which published a Trajectory of Health Disparities. Root factors of this issue include many forms of oppression and discrimination, which lead to poverty and homelessness. These communities are forced to live in unhealthy conditions because safe housing is not affordable. Minority neighborhoods are targeted with toxic waste, landfills, and polluted sites unsafely placed next to their homes. This is unethical because is creates major health risks including “contamination and greater exposure to viral or microbial agents in the air water, soil homes schools and parks.” (Prevention Institute). This is unethical. No people should be living next to dangerously polluted areas. This inspired me to investigate low-income neighborhoods in Redlands. Is this happening in our College town? And if so, what can I do to spread awareness to this issue? As a local student, and part of the larger Redlands community, I feel responsible to be an activist for social justice and change, to support my neighbors and not turn a blind eye to unethical disparity. “We don’t plan long term because if we do we’ll just get our hearts broken. It’s best not to hope. You can just take what you can get as you spot it.” (Tirado). All people deserve a safe environment to live, and no one should be forced to live in toxic and unhealthy conditions.

The essay written by Lisa Tirado, “This Is Why Poor People’s Bad Decision Make Perfect Sense” is a fascinating story of her personal experiences struggling to overcome poverty.  Therefore, it gave us the inside story based on her everyday routine as a mother, wife and a worker.  Working on low wage employments does not seem to get her nowhere and due to the lack of stability and poor financial decisions evades her from making long-term plans for the future.

Many families across America dealing with poverty and similar issues like Lisa, try to live a stable life with dignity and provide necessities for their children, appear to be difficult . In terms of annual wages increasing a low percentage, and the cost of good highly rising. However, many corporate companies may be responsible for not giving equal opportunities to employees based on discrimination and lack of support. Tirado justify that due to her image, lessen her chances of being promote into a position based on expectations of appearance and the only image she fit was working on the back hidden.  Many people experience these difficulties that keep them from being successful in an employment as well as overcoming poverty and risk of homelessness.

When someone is hungry and is given food, thirsty and is given drink, homeless and is given shelter, it can be regarded as a holy thing. (Matthew 25:31-46 ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’)

In America, where “least” is defined quantitatively by the almighty dollar, giving to others in need is typically regarded as an act of charity.  The country that has maligned the words of Karl Marx “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need” as dangerous and communistic, the country that touts its “dream” of rugged individuality wherein hard work guarantees the good life (home, a chicken in every pot, etc.), is a country that has many citizens for whom realizing the good life is an impossibility.  Lost here in the land of opportunity is the person, the humanity, the understanding that we are all essentially the same.  When the real – if usually cloaked – god is the almighty dollar, things can get pretty mixed up for people who are not lucky enough to be “born well.”  The value of “unskilled” laborers is faint, and these individuals are often despised.  At the same time, a demand for the hardest (physical) work remains ever-present. The people who have money to eat out, hire a house cleaner or gardener, and spend carelessly to satisfy their wishes are concerned with the service and not with the humans who provide the help.  They give at church and feel very holy and sanctimonious.  Where is the equality, the justice, the holiness in that?

In an OP-ED piece by Barbara Ehrenreich in the New York Times entitled Too Poor to Make the News, Ehrenreich notes that Larry Mishel, the president of the economic policy institute, offers data showing that blue-collar unemployment is increasing three times as fast as white-collar unemployment.  What a shock…not.  Our systemic failure and policy that support the dominance of the affluent and overlooks the suffering of those doing the actual life “work” is a natural byproduct of the unequal capitalist system that we enjoy.

I know that I am privileged…not only white privilege, but economically and socially privileged.  Reading Barbara Ehrenreich’s “Nickel and Dimed” helped me understand the living circumstances and day to day routine of someone who is working multiple minimum wage jobs in order to survive. It also led me to question the ‘unskilled’ terminology associated with these lines of work that are so essential to everyday existence and social progress.  The outlay of energy and the effort and physical consequences of the work do not in any way match the amount of money earned or the social value imbued. In a nutshell…how dare we???

I am humbled by our readings.  I am incensed by our readings.  I am inspired by our readings that we can be the change that we want in the world.

The homeless are a demographic of people who are often misrepresented. Negative stereotypes about homelessness often mask the truth of their situations. The course readings describe the realities of being poor. Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed is an ethnography based on her fieldwork.  Ehrenreich steps into the shoes of the poor as she works a variety of low-wage jobs. She observes and interacts with her co-workers as she struggles to make ends meet. Her revelations about her co-workers allows for the reader to get a glimpse of the challenges they face. Enrenreich is in a position of privilege and is a ‘guest’ in this world, her observations are told through her voice. We get first hand stories, in the people’s own voices in Kenan Heise’s The Book of the Poor.

Americans are told that persistence and hard work will allow you to reach ‘the American Dream.’ However, in reality (as seen in each of these readings) there are bigger issues at play. Working hard does not automatically guarantee that you will have a ‘successful’ life. On the Invisible People website,  many of the people sharing their stories mentioned that ‘it can happen to anyone.’ Once you are in the lower class, it becomes extremely difficult to get back on your feet. Hunger and homelessness is a micro result of a macro problem. Poverty occurs because of our society’s structural failures rather than an individual’s failures. After an exercise in class where we were prompted to create a budget, it was made clear that there a few options given to this demographic of people who are struggling. Sometimes are forced in to the common negative stereotypes that we see because they have no other options. Homeless is often dismissed by many, but the issues surrounding this phenomenon are far more complex.

In the readings, videos, and articles we have seen and read for class within the first two weeks of the semester, there has been one clear theme that has stuck out to me: struggle. There is nothing comfortable, relaxing, or remotely easy about the lives of those who fall below the so called “poverty line”. Those living paycheck to paycheck and barely making ends meet are never given any time to rest or relax or enjoy the money they worked so hard to earn. It’s a cruelly unfair life that most of these people lead and there seems to be no way out. In Barbara Ehrenreich’s book “Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America” (http://www.amazon.com/Nickel-Dimed-Not-Getting-America/dp/0312626681) Ehrenreich goes on an experimental journey to find out first hand what it is like to live on minimum wage in America. She works three different jobs (waitress, cleaning lady, and WalMart employee) and comes to the conclusion that it is nearly impossible to subsist entirely on minimum wage pay, no matter how hard she worked. Ehrenreich’s study is a one of a kind look at how the majority of people in our country live, and gives clear insight into the struggles of so many among us. To me, the most disturbing part of the book comes from when she is working at WalMart, and observes that many of her coworkers cannot even afford to buy the shoes at WalMart, because they are being paid so little.
The amount of disparity in income and wealth in our country both captivates and horrifies me. I have long understood the concept of class stratification in our society, but these last two weeks have really opened my eyes to what it all means. The activity we did last class was especially formative for me, because I truly realized that I had so much more to learn and how much I will need to expand my definition of what it means to be a working class American in today’s economy.