Poverty is one of the scourges that continue to ravage communities in the US and across the globe. In addition to limiting the quality of life, poverty also strips individuals of their dignity while inhibiting access to such services as education and healthcare. In an effort to eradicate poverty, the US government has implemented a number of initiatives. The decline in the number of poor Americans serves as evidence that these initiatives have largely been effective. However, for poverty to be eliminated entirely in the US and in other countries, focus should be placed on education.
There are various approaches to ending poverty in the US that have been proposed. The Democratic Party is persuaded that to eradicate poverty, the US needs to invest in security programs (Ways & Means Committee Democrats, 2016). This party contends that these programs are effective in improving nutrition, healthcare and poverty reduction. The programs that the Democratic Party is pushing for seem concerned with addressing the symptoms of poverty instead of its root causes. The Republican Party has also proposed initiatives which it believes hold the key to tackling the challenge of poverty in the US. According to this party, the country needs to focus its efforts on economic growth (Ways & Means Committee Democrats, 2016). The party believes that improvements in the economy will spur job creation, thereby helping to tackle poverty. The Democratic Party describes the initiative proposed by the Republican Party as misguided and ineffective. Members of the Democratic Party contend that the jobs that are created through economic growth are too unstable and cannot be relied on to end poverty (Ways & Means Committee Democrats, 2016). It is evident that there is no consensus within the political leadership regarding the best approach for tackling poverty.
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The academic community has become involved in the discussion regarding the most effective strategies for eradicating poverty. Various scholars have advised that the US should implement a wide range of initiatives. For example, Mary Joe Bane (2008) of the Harvard Kennedy School proposed that the US should adopt a raft of measures which she believes will help to reduce the number of Americans living in poverty. Among the strategies that Bane recommends include infrastructure development, revamping the Food Stamp program and shielding communities against the impacts of incarceration (Bane, 2008). There is no doubt that Bane’s proposals could help the US to successfully eliminate poverty. However, some of the strategies that she recommends aim to address the consequences of poverty. For example, investing in the Food Stamp program would only address the nutritional challenges that poor people face.
Rebecca Vallas and Melissa Boteach (2014) penned an enlightening piece which identifies some of the most effective initiatives for eradicating poverty in the US. These initiatives include job creation, increasing the minimum wage, promoting pay equity, providing employees with paid leave and expanding Medicaid. Criminal justice reform, overhauling work schedules and increasing funding for essential social programs are other initiatives that Vallas and Boteach present as effective solutions for poverty (Vallas & Boteach, 2016). These initiatives are indeed promising and the US government should at least consider implementing them.
Investing in education programs has been presented as the most promising approach to ending poverty in the United States. Recent census data shows that more than 20% of children in the US are living in poverty (Rokosa, 2011). Poverty hampers access to quality education and negatively impacts the academic performance of these children. To respond to the plight of the children, the US should set aside more funding for early education programs. These programs allow students to acquire the skills that they need for productive economic engagement (Rokosa, 2011). Moreover, adequately funded education programs empower students to participate fully in their communities. Therefore, since they equip students for the job market, education programs should be the main focus of the US government’s poverty eradication efforts.
The benefits of investing in education go beyond equipping students with skills and insights. As it invests in education programs, the government will also help to reduce crime rates (Rokosa, 2011). Various scholars have examined the link between crime and poverty. For example, in their article, Michael Friedson and Patrick Sharkey (2015) established a link between poverty and crime. Poverty appears to be both a consequence and the cause of crime. Education is understood to be among the resources that discourages crime. Therefore, through greater investment in education, the US government will be able to make significant strides in its poverty eradication initiatives.
The primary objective of investing in education programs is to help eliminate poverty. It is worth noting that this approach presents additional benefits. These benefits include higher graduation rates, significant reductions in the abuse and neglect of vulnerable children, and improving sexual and productive health. When accompanied with nutritional programs such as free lunch, investments in education also improve the health of students while boosting the country’s efforts to address such health problems as obesity (Hirsh-Pasek, Bustamante, & Golinkoff, 2017). Therefore, the US government should increase the amounts that it spends on education programs.
In conclusion, the rate of poverty in the US is unacceptably high. The high rate is despite the sustained government efforts to lift as many people as possible out of poverty. It is time that the US government considered other approaches to poverty eradication. Such initiatives as investing in programs aimed at spurring economic growth and social programs have had limited success. The government should address the root causes of poverty. To do this, it needs to increase funding for education programs. As it implements this strategy, the government should expect significant reductions in the rate of poverty.
References
Bane, M. J. (2008). Poverty reduction strategies for the US. Brookings Institution. Retrieved
June 2, 2018 from https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/bane_paper.pdf
Friedson, M., & Sharkey, P. (2016). Violence and neighborhood disadvantaged after the crime Decline. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 660 (1), 341-358.
Hirsh-Pasek, K., Bustamante, A. S., & Golinkoff, R. M. (2017). Funding childhood poverty Programs is key to social mobility. Brookings Institution. Retrieved June 2, 2018 From https://www.brookings.edu/blog/education-plus-development/2017/12/28/funding-childhood-poverty-programs-are-key-to-social-mobility/
Rokosa, J. (2011). Fighting the war on poverty with early childhood education. Center for American Progress. Retrieved June 2, 2018 from
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/poverty/news/2011/10/20/10547/fighting-the-war-on-poverty-with-early-childhood-education/
Vallas, R., & Boteach, M. (2017). The top 10 solutions to cut poverty and grow the middle Class. Center for American Progress. Retrieved June 2, 2018 from
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/poverty/news/2014/09/17/97287/the-top-10-solutions-to-cut-poverty-and-grow-the-middle-class/
Ways & Means Committee Democrats. (2016). Democrats leading efforts to reduce poverty and Help working families get ahead. Retrieved June 2, 2018 from
https://democrats-waysandmeans.house.gov/media-center/blog/democrats-leading-efforts-reduce-poverty-and-help-working-families-get-ahead
