How Many Times have you been on your Way Home

How many times have you been on your way home, or somewhere around downtown, and at a stoplight you see someone sitting at the intersection with a cardboard sign that reads something along the lines of, "Homeless and hungry"? If you have ever been in a car that passes through a large city in America, then like most others you probably have. What are some factors that make it hard for the homeless to get out of poverty? These are all commonly asked questions. However few people really take the time to find the answer. An outstanding injustice that I see prevalent in today’s society is the amount of people living in poverty in America. There are several factors that make it hard for the homeless to get out of poverty.

In Wealth Inequality In America, Politizane states that the poorest 20% to 30% are starting to suffer quite a lot compared to the ideal, and the middle class is certainly struggling more than they were; while the rich and wealthy are making roughly 100 times that of the poorest Americans (2). Politizane also states, The bottom 50% of Americans own half of a percent of these investments, which means they aren't investing, they are just barely getting by (2). That comes to show the poorest Americans don’t even register, they are down to their last penny, and the middle class is hardly detectable from the poorest (2). I read in Scarcity the book, that Scarcity means to not have enough of resources, which could lead to poverty and homelessness. The issues of poverty includes illness, addictions, homelessness, and several other factors that influence the quality of life for some people. Due to the price of living and harder to find jobs, and keeping work. Some people end up in a scarcity trap, they keep digging themselves a deeper hole into poverty and homelessness.

People look at poverty and homelessness unfairly with personal bias before knowing about the situation that a person could be in. For instance, in Scarcity the book, Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir give us an example of a study called the Hannah study. The study was done by John M Darley and Paget H. Gross. In this study it showed two groups observing a girl named Hannah. Each group of subjects observed a different Hannah with other backgrounds one poor and the other rich. The ones who observed rich Hannah seen less errors. In this study it was based off of people being bias and unfair towards the poor and homeless dressed Hannah. (154). Also, in Scarcity the book, Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir state another study called air traffic test. This test was done by R. L. Reppetti. In this test the professors examined parents that were air traffic controllers they found that when the parents had a slow day they were better on parenting skills. When the skies were full and busy the parents would have harsh and troubled parenting skills (155). This shows that parenting skills are dependant on "good days" which could lead to tunneling which also leads to bad parenting and lack of bandwidth. Lastly there was a sleep study in Scarcity the book done by J.T Cacioppo, L.C Hawkley, G.G Berntson, J.M. Ernst, A.C. Gibbs, R. Stickgold, and J.A. Hopsin that showed going without sleep for two nights in a row is insufficient sleep. Insufficient sleep further comprises bandwidth (Mullainathan and Shafir 160). Going without sleep for a long period of time could end up jeopardising your bandwidth and lead you into poverty. Risking the idea of lack of sleep and bad parenting ending in homelessness, we really need to make sure that we aren’t tunneling where it isn’t needed.

Scarcity is hard to escape whether it’s money scarcity, homelessness, poverty, or addiction. For example, I did my own research on a few different people regarding towards homelessness, and how it affects them and why they choose to stay that way. I researched Julia Melia, who has an addiction to drugs that she hasn’t been able to escape from. She revealed that she chose the addiction over her family and it lead her into homelessness. In my second research, I studied a man known as John Smith. In this research I conducted, he had no family or assistance nor did he have the resources to help him. This would eventually lead him to homelessness and poverty. In the third research, I did a study on Jane Mary in this study I found that poverty took a role into why she had became homeless. Poverty took place due to her moving to a big city she couldn’t afford from a small city that she could afford. Due to the price of living which led her to homelessness. In my research, these are the examples that prove why scarcity goes to show poverty and homelessness is hard to get out of and that they are not always connected to personal choice.

You need money to get out of the scarcity of money which it is hard and sometimes unfair. Throughout my research I find that the conclusion is, there are some factors that make it hard for the homeless to get out of poverty. There are several factors that make it hard for the people to get out of poverty and homelessness such as, but not limited to, the lack of money and jobs . People need money to overcome the scarcity of money. Which it is hard and sometimes may seem impossible. Depending on where you live the poverty rates could be higher in some areas even lower. All this is due to the cost of living and at times the lack of resources.

Work Cited
Mullainathan, Sendhil and Eldar Shafir. Scarcity. Times Books 2013.
Politizane. "Wealth Inequality in America." Youtube.com. Video

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