Question

How is “poverty” determined in the United States? What is the official poverty rate? Who are its critics and on what basis? Provide a description of those who are typically in poverty.

Answer 1

The government of United States defines poverty as being equal to or less than three times an average family in United States with minimum food expenditures as it is calculated by the USDA. The percentage of families in United States with incomes below the poverty line is known as the poverty rate. Since the early 1970s, average incomes in US have increased, however the poverty rate increased slightly.

The official U.S. poverty line for a family is computed by multiplying three times the annual cost of a minimum food requirement. The official definition of poverty does not include in-kind transfers. The critics of the current method for the calculation of poverty point out that the CPS ASEC measures only monetary income (example Social Security income, veterans payment, workers’ compensation, earnings, pensions), however does not include other sources of non-cash or in-kind gifts from private or public sources (example: public education, healthcare, public housing, food and the like that). Also it does not take into consideration other living costs (such as shelter, utilities, and transportation) besides food.

As there is a clear linkage between education, poverty reduction and sustainability, it often uses education as a short-hand for promoting economic growth. Education is highly relevant and has the potential to equip individuals with skills required to improve their livelihoods, thus holds the power to transform people’s lives. Also black are not preferred in job, thus the racial inequality benefits white workers by bargaining strength and weakening black workers' solidarity; and resulting to poverty