POVERTY AND INEQUALITIES
According to the evidence collected concerning the impacts of previous pandemic outbreaks, there has been a wider gap of income inequality, unemployment prospects and the unemployed people who have advanced degrees and especially for those with basic education. I think the aftermath from of the COVID-19 crisis will be to widen the inequality further than the expected. Considering the intensity of the current impacts of the pandemic crisis on the various life aspects, and the economy, the gap between the rich and the poor will continue to get wider. Based on the concept of poverty and discrimination in the economy, the quality and level of education that someone acquires determines the type of job that one can get and thus increasing the chances of escaping poverty and attain a financial independence. However, the current crisis has led to a lockdown of schools limiting the chances of needy youths who cannot afford remote classes from accessing education compared to those who come from families with parents who are able to pay for their education now. (Schiller, 1972).
If the poor are not in a position to acquire education then it will be difficult for them to escape poverty. Education is said to cut poverty by 10 per cent for all ages and even much more for the children. The young children in school are the most vulnerable to the ongoing inequalities of education. Considering the current situation in education due to COVID-19 crisis, education is attained by those parents that can afford to pay for remote training for their children during the current schools shutdown. The current inequality in education will lead to inequality in employment in future among the youths thus the poor state of needy people will get worse. According to the projections made by the world statistics, COVID-19 will lead to severe extremes of poverty with forty to sixty million people becoming poor. The pandemic has led to loss of jobs among many people affecting the survival of millions of families across the globe. Although governments are trying to put more efforts in redistribution of income and resources, from the rich to the needy, research still registers high levels of inequality between the poor and the rich. (Schiller, 1972).
The stress in the economy due to the crisis is leading the global economy to a depression and considering the numbers of people who lost their jobs due to the shrinking of opportunities together with the unemployed youths, COVID-19 aftermath will have very many unemployed population. Considering that higher percentage of females have lost their jobs according to the research conducted in the United States due to the higher rate shrinking of social workers jobs. After the crisis the highest population without employment will be composed of females leading to gender inequality at work places.
The class study concerning the perspective of poverty and discrimination in the economy changed my initial perspective concerning the matter. Its sad how the poor people get discriminated instead of being helped out to become independent financially. The government wastes a lot of resources due to inefficiencies and corruption although it makes a lot of efforts to help the needy through the social welfare programs like the food stamps. However, the government should consider establishing programs that contribute to financial independence for the needy. Before I read the topic I had the perspective that the government cannot reach and solve the problems of each and everyone. Although people have various problems which may make it difficult for the government to solve for one person after another, the government can establish programs for those who are willing to improve their lives. If the needy population make efforts to access and utilize the government projects it can help them improve their independence. (Schiller, 1972).
According to research, education cuts poverty by around ten percent for the entire population and much more for the youths. People get employment depending on the level of education one receives. Therefore education has a great impact in the economy and in the fight of reducing poverty among populations. When the needy children acquire quality education, they change their lives together with their families thus reducing the poverty gap. Government projects offering quality education for everyone without discrimination regardless of whether they are poor or rich can help enhance the economic condition. Unfortunately, the government avails the less allocation for the needy and the bigger part of the resources to the rich. Rich people can access quality education but unluckily it’s expensive for the poor to afford. If every needy child got access to good education then the poverty rate would reduce at a significant rate. I believe that the solution to poverty is education. The more people get educated the less the government has to allocate for social programs like food stamps program. A Poverty reduction also implies a positive impact on the economy. (Schiller, 1972).
Other poverty management projects are skills training for the population to increase the commitment of the people towards making a living independently. However the government should the projects free or charge lower costs for the needy population to afford and enhance their financial independence as much as possible.
I know for the government to achieve all that may be difficult and almost a fantasy because the government still sacrifices a lot to make sure that the needy in the society have the basic needs like housing and food for them to survive. Programs whose resources are well utilized should receive more allocation of resources and corrupt programs should be reverted. That’s why it’s important to reevaluate government programs to enhance the efficiency and reduce the wastage of resources which are needed by another program. The study of poverty and discrimination has enhanced my understanding concerning the aspects contribute to poverty and the various ways that can reduce poverty. (Schiller, 1972).
I found reading chapter one more interesting because it discusses on matters that commonly affect many people in various countries across the globe. in almost all the countries, the less disadvantaged people in the society face a certain level of discrimination because of their state of poverty and helplessness, they tend to receive undesirable inequalities In life. The aspects of inequality, poverty and discrimination is always generating subjects for impassioned debates.
Aspects rose concerning poverty and inequality are usually true and basic on the various dimension. The debates are usually guided by basic concerns like which degree of inequality rate rated as too much? How long can a low level of income give an implication of poverty? There are also questions raised concerning other aspects and criterions which can be used to measure poverty and inequality if any. The debates on the various causes of poverty and inequality are real and intense which made me like the chapter much more. Poverty is a reality and is experienced by many people in the community and is a big challenge to the economies of many countries across the globe, so the discussions are about reality and is guided by facts. (Schiller, 1972).
The aspect of inequality is complicated and explaining in using one notion is inadequate. Multiple aspects should be addressed to determine inequality. When inequality is determined using the income received, it may lead to wrong assessments and mistakes when assisting the needy. People who are near to poor may receive the incentives and relief products allocated for the poor. A combination of aspects can be helpful in ensuring that the right target of the population is correctly identified. The inequality increases in cases where the rich use the allocations of the poor programs to add on their wealth while others are lacking basic needs like food and housing.
Discrimination has a dual role in inequality dynamics. The unequal abilities to access to the various levels of success in an economy leads to certain inequalities in income and wealth. Discrimination prevents people from enjoying the full social measures of whatever the level of economic status they may attain. In most cases the discriminated population is usually at the bottom at the income distribution and sometimes they may lack sufficient income to settle down their basic needs. (Schiller, 1972).
Discrimination is caused by various issues, for example, people may get discriminated based on their skin color, ethnicity, level of income, among many others. A black person may get discriminated and paid less money compared to a white person with the same level of education and performing the same duties in the same company. Discrimination can also happen in courts where poor people may fail to get their justice because of lack of money. Those with money get access to better schools for their children and nice jobs leaving out the disadvantaged. (Schiller, 1972).