Reflections on Week Eleven

I thought our focus on poverty was very helpful in informing us on the issues of both domestic and global poverty. Our visit to Bread for the City was very informative on the problem of domestic poverty in D.C. I thought their multifaceted approach to addressing poverty—providing medical, legal, social, and financial services, along with food and clothing—was very ingenious, for it dealt with the major issues facing D.C. residents who are impoverished or at risk for poverty. It was also very telling to hear the staff that came and talked with us voicing their concern, and in some cases disgust, over how the city is dealing with poverty. I was disturbed to hear about the lack of supermarkets in low-income D.C. communities, as access to food is such a basic and vital requirement for people everywhere. Since I plan on doing community service here in D.C., it was good to learn about a possible venue where I could help the community!

Our activity on global poverty was really good, and I enjoyed looking at the many different aspects of poverty, as well as the many different ways in which poverty can be addressed. Although I felt it was difficult in choosing between all the different options for fighting poverty, I think our group did a good job by addressing the base problems of poverty, such as lack of infrastructure, clean water, literacy, and agricultural development, so that a foundation could be built on which to continue further improvements, such as healthcare, education, and so on. We reasoned that education would be no good if people were dying because they didn’t have access to clean water and food, so that is why we picked these. One thing I noticed was that there was no option regarding population control, which I feel is a very important step in fighting poverty due to the fact that the planet’s resources are limited and cannot support an infinite amount of people. The activity also sparked a lot of interest for me in exploring international development, especially the use of appropriate technology to help fight poverty and further progress in developing countries, so I hope to take a closer look at that area of international relations.

-Gregory Proulx

The Question of Poverty

Does the government have an obligation to address poverty? Is this a legitimate issue for public policy to take on?

Absolutely.

Throughout human history, poverty has always been a persistent issue. In ancient and medieval societies, the wealth gap between rich and poor was enormous. The wealthy minority was composed of royalty and high-level clergy, while the majority was composed of poor peasants. As history has progressed this system of economic polar opposites has lessened somewhat, due to numerous factors including new technology, ideas, and practices. The “first world,” or countries that are technologically-advanced democracies whose citizens have a high standard of living, include countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, and those of Western Europe. The economic class structure in many of these countries consists of a large middle class and smaller low and high classes. However, it should be noted that this does not indicate a global decrease in poverty; instead, it highlights a shift in these countries from exploiting domestic labor to exploiting foreign labor. The North-South gap is a lasting legacy of such colonial imperialism. Millions of people live in abject poverty with no access to clean water, proper nutrition, medical care, education, and the myriad of other things that we in the United States take for granted. I think tackling the monumental challenge of poverty is possibly one of the most pressing obligations of the world’s governments. Not only is it a monumental challenge, but it is one governments and people everywhere must address so as to build a better, more equal and just future for all mankind.

-Gregory Proulx