Poverty Persists In These Modern Times
Unequal wealth distribution had always been an issue in our lives. Since time immemorial, there had always been conflicts and misunderstanding because some people had more than they’ll ever need while many suffer from hunger and poverty. Don’t be misled to believe that those times are way behind us now. We may live in a world full of technological innovations and advancements but poverty still lingers all around you. Some can afford to buy all those lavish and sophisticated gadgets while one family spends the night in the cold and without food to qualm their hungry stomach. If one thing is true, it is that wealth inequality is more apparent now more than ever since you can easily tell from the material things a person possess how well or badly they are doing in life. It really feels like a smack in the face when you see privileged individuals waste money on nonsense things and luxurious whims and fancies when a big majority of the world’s population can’t even afford to feed themselves and their family or put a roof above their heads. And you don’t even have to live in third-world countries to witness this first-hand as poverty is also a lingering problem in many progressive nations.
Whether it is in the US or in some parts of Europe, you can see homeless people begging for money and food but still the government seems is not doing anything about it. The economy is performing poorly. That is understandable and many people went out of work but to see a glaring number of people who are out of work and unable to provide for themselves keep on growing higher over the years is just plain grim. Perhaps things are more expensive now and other people feel the impact of basic commodities rising but it should not be an acceptable reason to justify the growing poverty line even in rich and powerful nations. Poverty is just the tip of the iceberg because along comes with it a myriad of other problems involving health, safety, and many others because people do drastic things during desperate times.
Unemployment
When he visited the city a shocking 20 per cent of men and women were out of work – compared to the 11 per cent England/Wales average.
But while employment prospects across the UK have drastically improved since then, Liverpool hasn’t been as lucky.
Official estimates show that the national rate of unemployment for 16-64 year olds today is five per cent.
Homelessness
The number of rough sleepers in the city has risen dramatically too.
Official figures estimate there were at least 21 people sleeping rough in Liverpool on one night at the end of October in 2016.
That’s up from 15 people counted at the same time the year before, and seven times as many as the three people counted in 2010 – way higher than the national average.
(Via: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/living-poverty-liverpool-lagging-behind-11651310)
If you live in poor Asian and Middle Eastern countries, it would have been acceptable to see lots of poor people converged altogether. But seeing them scattered in vibrant cities of the West does not make sense when they should have the money to provide for the needs of their citizens especially if they can afford to send aid to other struggling nations in various parts of the world. We see the statistics keep on getting higher each passing year and makes us wonder if things can still go downhill from here. Even technology is not enough to save people from the streets. In fact, it has even contributed to why many lost their jobs to machines.
A ghostly chant of “Bill of Rights, Bill of Rights” drifted out of a sidewalk tent as the United Nations monitor on extreme poverty walked the streets of skid row as part of a national tour investigating human rights conditions for the poorest U.S. citizens.
Philip Alston, an Australian and a New York University law professor, got a full taste of the epicenter of L.A. homelessness last week, passing by a shelter courtyard with dozens of people bedding down on the concrete because there was no room inside.
He and his entourage veered into the street to avoid a shirtless man who lay groaning across a wheelchair, a colostomy bag showing below his shorts hem.
“I think it’s on a scale I hadn’t anticipated, block after block of people,” Alston said at the tour’s end. “When you see how concentrated it is, it’s more shocking.”
(Via: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-un-skid-row-20171211-story.html)
In a country like America that takes pride in itself being the land of the free and the home of the brave, there are locations that have always been the face of poverty. In the East Coast, it is Skid Row. Away from the limelight of Hollywood and the posh homes of celebrities in Beverly Hills and Malibu, countless poor and helpless souls live their days and nights battling the elements without any assurance they will be able to eat their next meal or not. Why is it that a country as rich and powerful as ours can’t take care of its own people? Well, perhaps it will remain a mystery to all as it has always been for the past centuries. There is always the rich and the poor. Now, it’s time to question if there is still some remnant of humanity left in all of us since we obviously allow this injustice to happen right under our noses.