The Elderly and Poverty
Photo by Bradley (2018)
Photo 1 shows two people gauging by the wrinkles on their hands; they are older adults of ages 60 plus. One of the photo persons is holding a United States ten-dollar bill while the other has is pointing and holding a coin on the table. The photo shows coins on the table or desk image, which the older man counting the cents. The two older adults depicted in the photo have each walking stick, perhaps to help them move to place due to old age. In the photo, the person on the left is likely to be a woman judging by their clothing since they are wearing a dress. The person on the right is a man, as evident in his hands and body's physique besides the male pants and shirt, he is wearing.
Photo by Kim (2018)
Photo 2 shows a white woman in eyeglasses. The woman has white hair and seems to be explaining something to someone on the left of the image outside the photo frame. The photo's setting is in an automobile, perhaps an old campervan judging by the dents on the vehicle shown immediately behind the woman’s neck. The woman's immediate right in the photo is a loaf of bread and something that looks like groceries in the box. The cups, a bucket, and some other utensils are visible in the photo. There is a bed on the left of the picture, and indications of limited space in the van forcing arrangement of proximity between items are in the van. The photo shows the van’s windscreen and the green vegetation in front of the van.
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Elderly and Poverty Summary Photo 1 and 2
The two photos represent the plight of the elderly persons and their efforts to cope in the United States (U.S.). The elderly over depend on social security funds and help from family members or well-wishers. The U.S. elderly use such funds to acquire their basic needs. It is saddening that these older adults have to face struggles in developed countries like the U.S., which has not reduced its old-age poverty to 10% or below (Rasmussen & Gapinski, 2018). The American elderly situation raises more questions than it gives answers as most of the elderly lack income sources. The American elderly persons live in deplorable conditions similar to conditions depicted in the second photo. Like Mary, other older people have to improvise with available resources, like living in a van, to make some shelter. Some of the elderly end up on the streets and suffer hardship conditions in getting access to their basic needs. In other cases, they have to live in their often old vehicles like the case of Mary, who had to sell her house she had inherited from her mother. She opted to sell the house since she couldn’t afford to pay taxes, gardeners, and other expenses. The leading causes of the increasing numbers of the elderly poor in the United States are the decrease in income sources, an increase in living costs, and the ever skyrocketing healthcare costs. The poor elderly in the country have limited financial means to cater for her medical expenses or relatives to help her and thus lives on meager resources. The numbers of the poor elderly increased in 2019 to the point that 1 in every 7 of the elderly Americans lives in poverty with a lack of most basic needs, barely surviving.
The American elderly continue to struggle in poverty, having immense difficulties in making ends meet. They struggle to raise healthcare and housing bills, suffer inadequate nutrition, do not have access to transportation, and have lost jobs. Most 60+ year-olds are currently economically insecure. The lower-and middle-class elderly suffer most as they either have very little or no savings. On the contrary, the upper class often has stable enterprises with some billionaires who can cater to their needs. Unfortunately, the upper-class elderly account for a small segment of the elderly in the country compared to the whole group of the elderly. The middle class and lower-class elderly most depend on social security and help from other people. Rasmussen & Gapinski (2018) affirm that 21% of the elderly who are recipients of social security and the 43% older persons 65 and older get over 90% of their income from social security, hardly enough to cater to their essential needs. Surprisingly, the poor American elderly had glamorous days of their youth with resources, income sources, and good lives but not anymore, but depend on church handouts and charity. The changes such as globalization, economic recession, and an increase in living costs affect the elderly with changes in the state from employment to retirement; they can no longer afford to keep up their previous lifestyles.
The seniors face daily struggles, dilemmas, and challenges in getting their basic needs. In some cases, the problem is worsened when they have to look after a young relative. In that case, they have to provide for both the children under their care and for themselves. Whereas the seniors could want to get the best shelters and provisions for themselves, the financial limitation caps it; they have to settle for the bare minimum of what is available. The photos reflect how these poor elderly attempts to become all things from beggars to extending the retirement time to create earning opportunities. The reality is older adults work beyond their 60th birthday to make and save a little more to get a better life once they are out of work. There are times when the elderly have to partner to attempt and raise resources to give them a collectively comfortable experience. The elderly poor who depend on handouts face crises when food banks' foods get depleted or decrease. Moreover, there are times when the donors and well-wishers prioritize the physically challenged poor elderly while neglecting the rest. The poverty rates among America’s elderly are slightly lower than was the case 10 years ago. The low and middle-income elderly often have nothing when they get out of employment during retirement. Often they have to start on the streets, if not in camps, before they can get some help and settle down or else remain on the streets till death. Similarly, the elderly with expert skills or higher education is likely to make it through investment in companies or offering consultation services, unlike their unskilled or semi-skilled counterparts, and end up only getting stuck due to the physical strength deterioration with old age.
The elderly poor in the U.S. account for about 9.2 % of all the 46 million Americans who are poor, with varied stories behind their current conditions (Al Jazeera, 2017). These elderly poor recount that many life events have contributed to their current states against their youthful expectations. Some seniors’ resources through failed marriages always leave them broken and more impoverished than before. Now they have to struggle alone, which is a daunting task, especially since they lack stable income sources. The elderly become poor after getting through several challenging experiences that drain their resources or deny them their well-deserved resources. The many American elderly who struggle in poverty are homeless and can hardly afford primary medical care. They suffer income inequality and lose essential resources when economic recessions, earthquakes, or drought happen in their lives. The upper class takes the elderly often only to encounter some small hits, with most of them recovering and moving on. However, the middle class and low-class Americans often are most hit and rarely bounce back to their initial economic status. Instead, their situation gets worse. Notably, the aging white Americans are less likely to suffer the adverse effects of poverty than older adults of color. The white older adults receive more pay for the same job as their counterparts of color and thus retiring with more resources than them. The federal government attempts to resolve this disparity by raising the incomes of most people of color. Additionally, whites have more interest in bank accounts, less revenue from assets, and less trust.
Conclusion
The photo essay assignment teaches me that having a job during the productive years (20-50 years) does not guarantee a financially secure old age life. The single parents, widows, and widowers are significantly disadvantaged when they get older due to the limited income, less than what a couple elderly would achieve. The state of poverty among the elderly in the U.S. continues to get legislation and investors' attention. Most members of the two groups encourage humanity to resolve poverty. The government-backed charity organizations, private companies, and individual Americans should continue deliberating on the best solutions of ensuring each one has basic needs and lives comfortably through the right measures. It is irrefutable that some elderly have to take contractual jobs to make money to provide for their children and spend quality time with them to raise them well. The lower and middle-class elderly suffer more than their upper-class counterparts who smoothly sail through life’s financial problems. However, both groups have to deal with the emotional challenges of handling the changes in their lives. Additionally, a series of bad events can lead to poverty and have led many people who were initially well-of sinking to abject poverty. It is prudent for every American to give willingly and avoid judging the poor elderly in the U.S.
References
Al Jazeera. (2017, October 12). Al Jazeera English . Retrieved November 02, 2020, from One in seven U.S. seniors, live in poverty: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGqoxJCTTxg.
Bradley, C.B. (2018). [Picture of Rachel Riley and Chadwick Brown in Social security offices in New York, NY][Photograph]. Docent Shutterstock. https://theconversation.com/social-security-helped-slash-elderly-poverty-to-9-2-percent-in-the-20th-century-that-triumph-is-now-in-jeopardy-99359
Kim, K.A (2018). [Picture of Mary Magroree in Miami] [Photograph].Al Jazeera. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGqoxJCTTxg /shorturl.at/kptJN
Rasmussen, D. W., & Gapinski, J. H. (2018, November 26). The conversation. Social Security helped slash elderly poverty to 9.2 percent in the 20th century – that triumph is now in jeopardy , 23-29.
