Poverty and Children in America
Poverty and Children in the United States
Who are America’s poor children? How many children in America are poor? What are some of the hardships that face poor children in America? These are only a few questions that we can ask ourselves when considering children who live in poverty in America. Children face monumental hardships in our country because of poverty or the condition of not possessing the means to afford basic human needs. The economic crisis that we find ourselves in today threatens to cause a dramatic increase in the number of America’s poor children; however poverty in America has long been a crisis that has faced the children of our nation. This essay will investigate the previous asked questions and research the challenges that poverty plays on the sociology of children in the United States.
Who are America’s Poor Children? According to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) 14 million American children live in families with incomes below the federal poverty level, which is $22,050 a year for a family of four. They also state that the number of children living in poverty increased by 21 % between 2000 and 2008 and it is estimated that there are 2.5 million more children living in poverty today than in 2000. (Wright, 2010) These numbers are staggering and are estimated to grow significantly in the next few years considering the current economic crisis facing the United States. The NCCP explains that current research shows, on average, families need an income of about twice the federal poverty level to survive. Children who live in homes with incomes of $44,100 or less, for a family of four, are considered low income. This means that forty one percent of children in the United States live in low income homes. Children represent 25 % of the population and 41 % of all children live in low income families and nearly one in every five live in poor families (NCCP, 2010). Families in the United States are facing
Who are America’s poor children? How many children in America are poor? What are some of the hardships that face poor children in America? These are only a few questions that we can ask ourselves when considering children who live in poverty in America. Children face monumental hardships in our country because of poverty or the condition of not possessing the means to afford basic human needs. The economic crisis that we find ourselves in today threatens to cause a dramatic increase in the number of America’s poor children; however poverty in America has long been a crisis that has faced the children of our nation. This essay will investigate the previous asked questions and research the challenges that poverty plays on the sociology of children in the United States.
Who are America’s Poor Children? According to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) 14 million American children live in families with incomes below the federal poverty level, which is $22,050 a year for a family of four. They also state that the number of children living in poverty increased by 21 % between 2000 and 2008 and it is estimated that there are 2.5 million more children living in poverty today than in 2000. (Wright, 2010) These numbers are staggering and are estimated to grow significantly in the next few years considering the current economic crisis facing the United States. The NCCP explains that current research shows, on average, families need an income of about twice the federal poverty level to survive. Children who live in homes with incomes of $44,100 or less, for a family of four, are considered low income. This means that forty one percent of children in the United States live in low income homes. Children represent 25 % of the population and 41 % of all children live in low income families and nearly one in every five live in poor families (NCCP, 2010). Families in the United States are facing
References: Cohen, Aaron M., Child Homelessness on the Rise, the Futurist Aug. 1, 2009. Vol. 43, Issue 4, p7, Retrieved March 1, 2010 from EBSCOhost Goldstein, Amy, 2009 Child Hunger and increasingly complex problem, Washington Post, Retrieved March 1, 2010 from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article.html National Center for Children in Poverty, Mailman School of Public Health, NCCP, 2010, Retrieved March 1, 2010 from http://www.nccp.org.html Retrieved March 1, 2010 from http://www/childtrends.org/files/child_trends-2009-04-07-rb-childrenin Poverty.pdf Poverty, (2001), In World of Sociology, Gale. Retrieved March 1, 2010 from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/worldsocs/poverty Wright, Vanessa R., Chau, Michelle, Yumiko Aratani, 2010, Who are America’s Poor Children? The Official Story, National Center for Children in Poverty, NCCP, 2010 Retrieved March 1, 2010 from http://www/nccp.org/publications/pub_912.html Young, Yolanda, 2009, USA Today, In America today, hunger is very real, News, pg Retrieved March 1, 2010 from EBSCOhost