Now, I realize that I have only seen a small slice of America. From pre-student teaching to my current role, I've been in seven school districts. In each community, either through church or religion, I have seen service learning projects. Students and adults, families and congregants, going out and trying to help individuals and families that have fallen get up. When I've talked to those that are there, those who work and those who need help, many are victims of circumstances including abuse and neglect. Some suffer significant mental illness, frequently untreated, and some are truly lost in the world.
In the United States, 21% of children, over 15,000,000, kids live with families earning less than the Federal poverty line. This is down from 16,387,000 in 2011. This is a pretty large number. These children are spread everywhere. They live in cities, in suburbs, and in small towns. I have worked with many and their families. The funny thing is, their peers understand that their families are working to make it. They ask what does your mom do. The children share the jobs she's working. Their friends ask who is home when you get home. Sometimes its no one. Sometimes its an aunt, a grandma, or dad's friend. Frequently the conversations end with wow, you parent works a lot. These same kids, those in poverty and those that are not, often join in for a used coat drive "we are just sharing it with the next family that needs it," or helping make lunches at the local social service, "I may not be able to share the food, but I can help make the meal."
So, I must be missing something. I have yet to meet these denizens of leeches working the system to avoid their societal responsibility. These individuals and families that are conscientiously working the government over while playing their iPhones. Is their corruption and manipulation? Of course there must be. Am I saying that everyone is pure and innocent? No. Simply, I see greater empathy from our students and our families, those who have and those who don't than from our leaders. I am proud of the social service our children lead, our teachers lead, and our congregations lead. I wonder why those at the top are the ones who see these large bands of leeches, I'm here in the trenches and struggling to find them.
I believe your initial point is crucial here. We see what we choose to see.
ReplyDeleteIt is also true, however, that if a person has never experienced something it can be hard to imagine. Poverty and desperation to a billionaire is like $250 hair appointments to me.... crazy unbelievable. They just want to put a bandage over it (blames the victim) so nothing is done....