As in any other playoff, candidate rhetoric let loose during the U.S. presidential race can be tough. We’ve held a front row seat to the 2012 showdown for over a year, with tensions still rising as the general election looms nearer. Some of the barbs launched along the campaign trail have been laughable: Newt Gingrich’s television ad incriminating Mitt Romney for his ability to speak French comes to mind. Others are not. The dialogue surrounding U.S. poverty and inequality, two issues that are hotter than ever during a deep recession that the nation has shown incapable of simply shaking off [...]
Rural Poverty
Poverty linked with teen pregnancy
The high poverty rate and low levels of education in the Southeast are strongly correlated with the region’s high number of teen births, according to a study by Auburn University. The study finds that teenage pregnancy is an effect of poverty, and suggests that poor sex education and lack of access to health resources,... »
Low-income California communities lack water, plumbing
OPINION: Low-income communities in California’s San Joaquin Valley suffer from poor infrastructure and substandard housing. In one instance, a single well served 65 families—until it ran dry, which forced residents to use baby wipes to clean themselves and fetch water in buckets from county water tanks. Elsewhere, private water companies built systems that quickly fell into... »
Lack of public transportation impedes employment
Lack of public transportation is a major roadblock to finding or keeping employment for residents of rural Washington County, Washington. Many low-income families struggle to remain employed without reliable transportation: bus routes are limited, and many must rely upon their own, often balky, cars. Inequitable funding exacerbates these challenges, as social service agencies in cities get... »
Flooded farmers rely on creativity to recover from Irene
Many New York farmers watched their crops and their annual income drown under the floods of Hurricane Irene. Those who qualify for government aid must navigate the tangles of bureaucracy; those who do not have turned to creative solutions to stay afloat. Photo credit: Phil Mansfield. »
Eastern Tennessee counties shrink as poverty rate grows
As more residents move away to find work, eastern Tennessee’s population is falling. Scott, Morgan, and Claiborne counties are the least populated in the region and shrinking; they also have the state’s highest jobless rates. In Scott County alone, plant closings have led to a 20.4 percent unemployment rate and a 24 percent poverty... »
New Jersey volunteers bring food, clothing, awareness to Kentucky town
Volunteers from local faith groups in Millburn, N.J., have recently returned from a mission trip to McRoberts, Ky., where they delivered food, clothing, and furniture to a town hard hit by strip mining and rural poverty. Widespread drug use among McRoberts’ youth has many worried about the future of the next generation. Many Millburn... »