Running Head: Children in Poverty

Children in Poverty
Alyssa Dannhausen
Wayne State University
SW 3710

Children in Poverty
Introduction
According to usda.gov, it costs on average $12,800- $14,970 a year to raise a child. It
would cost around $26,000 a year just to raise two children. Many people living in poverty are
not able to supply their children with everything he or she would need for a great life. There are
families that are living in poverty everyday, struggling to afford their families. Living in poverty
does not just affect the parents, it also affects the children. As a society, we should be able
looking at these families, especially the children, and taking drastic measures to help them.
Poverty is measured differently, depending on location, but what is poverty?
What is Poverty?
The federal poverty level is set at an income of $23,550 a year, for a family of four
(National Center for Children in Poverty, n.d.). Living in poverty doesnt mean that the
parents/guardians are unemployed or lazy. These parents may have multiple jobs and work very
hard at it but they are paid such low wages. Unfortuently, even those who are working multiple

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jobs are still below the poverty line and unable to afford their daily needs, including their bills.
According to the Childrens and Youth Services Review, in 2007 13 million children were living
at or below the poverty level. Many children who are living in poverty are from minority
families or living in a single family home, (Genntian, Castells, Morris, 2010). When children live
in poverty, their everyday lives and their future are affected. Because of low income, families
cannot afford to have medical insurance or adequate food to provide proper nutrition.
According to James Garbarino, children living in poverty are living in socially toxic
environments (Garbarino, 1996). Many of these children are getting poor education because
their schools cannot afford the proper up-to-date textbook. The children may be suffering from
learning disabilities and are not able to receive the proper help they need (Garbarino, 1996). As a
society, who fixes this problem? Who helps out the helpless?
Policies and Services
Our government has several policies and services in place for low-income/poverty families. For
example, TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), is a policy that was put into place
to aid families in need. According to Janice Peterson, TANF is a program designed by the
government that gives grants to the States, for assistance programs for poor families. The
programs criteria/requirements differ by state, but the programs have limits for participants. The
recipients of the assistance have to meet work requirements and they have a five-year limit on
the cash assistance given to them (Peterson, 2000). Janice talks about a story of a women, with a
seven year old child, who was able to get off of welfare programs, works 40 hours a week,
making minimum wages and only bringing in less than $1000 a month. This woman admits that
she is in the working poor class, and that it is hard to get by (Peterson, 2000). If you qualify for
TANF, then it is likely you could qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or
SNAP. SNAP provides assistance to families who need help with nutrition, food stamps, lowincome housing, cash assistance, or even helping pay for childcare. The government spends

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about $80 billion on the SNAP program, providing to over 47 million participants in 2010
(Gregory & Deb, 2015). Qualifying for these programs and becoming recipients of the assistance
can truly help out Americas low-income or below poverty families.
Who Receives Services?
Each state has different, but similar requirements to receive public assistance, such as
TANF or SNAP. According to the Department of Human Services in Illinois, in order to receive
aid, applicants must have one or more of the following:

Be pregnant, or have a child under the age of 19

Be a United States Citizen
Immigrants CAN qualify, if certain criteria is met
Come up with a plan to get back on their feet and working.

If a recipient meets these requirements, they may receive aid (http://www.dhs.state.il.us/).

How Do Policies Impact Those Most Impacted?
Children cannot provide for themselves, their parents/guardians must do so. If a child is
living in a family that is struggling and low-income or falling below the poverty line, receiving
aid from the government can save their lives. Receiving SNAP and getting assistance to allow
you to bring proper nutrition home to your families can change lives. Your children, who were
once hungry, can finally go to bed feeling full. SNAP always gives families, who may be
homeless, a chance to live in low-income housing, or receiving aid to help pay for their home
and bills. Parents or guardians can also receiving help with childcare costs, which means that
parents can have a job and allow their child to be properly cared for.
History

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Historically, child poverty has always been a concern. Regardless of the time, there have
been less fortunate people and many of those people are children. It wasnt until the 1960s that
the government started to actually measure poverty. In 1963, Mollie Orshanky created the term
poverty threshold. The purpose of the poverty threshold is a way to assess the risks of low
economic status. (Fisher, 1992, p.3). According to Fisher (1992), Orshanky had included two
different thresholds. One threshold was from the Agriculture Departments economy food plan
and the other was similar to a low-cost food plan (p.3). While creating the threshold, Mollie had
used different demographic groups and these groups involved children (Fisher, 1992, p.3). The
governments past with fighting poverty is extensive and they werent always effective.
In January,1964, the Johnson administration declared War on Poverty. A poverty line of
$3,000 was put into place for families of all sizes and $1,500 for individuals. The poverty line
was determined, at the time, by the minimum wage level (Fisher, 1992, p.4). According the
United States Department of Labor, minimum wage in January 1964 was $1.00 (History of
Changes to the Minimum Wage, n.d.). While the government was taking a step forward in
fighting poverty, they neglected to take an important factor into consideration. The poverty line
was set at $3,000 for every family, regardless of the size. If a family had five children, they
would be given the same amount and consideration as a family with only one child. The family
with five children has more expenses and more mouths to feed than the family with one child.
Over the years, our nations poverty line has increased and eventually included different ranks
for differing numbers of children. Poverty has and will always be a problem in our country, due
to so many uncontrollable factors.
The definition of poverty changes based on the time period and the location a person
lives. Poverty is determined by many factors, including the minimum wage. Over the years our

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minimum wage has increased, along with our cost of living. To create a poverty line for our
nation, we have to have some form of discrimination against the poor (Laderchu, Saith, Steward,
2003, p.245). It is important to realize that the definition of poverty will change year after year.
The cost of living in 1963 is completely different than what the cost of living is in 2015. Another
aspect to take into consideration is that where a population lives. The cost of living in California
will be different than those who live in Ohio. If we want perspective on how drastic the
definition of poverty can be, we can take third world countries into account. Taking a population
of a third world country and comparing it to the lifestyle of those living in poverty in America,
would be completely different. The worlds poorest country (according to the GDP per capita) is
Malawi with a per capita of $226.50 and when we compare it to the United States at $53,042, it
really shows that location can also determine the definition of poverty. As we can see, the
definition of poverty changes over time, as does the treatment.
Social Stigma
According to David Hilfiker, we as Americans have always wanted to improve poor
people (A History of Poverty in America, n.d.). In earlier years, the poor were looked as a
burden and were assumed to be lazy or drunks. We now understand that people are poor or fall
below the poverty line for numerous reasons. The society and economy could be failing them
and they could have lost their job. If a person(s) loses their minimum wage paying job, they may
be unable to receive unemployment or benefits. This causes the person and their family,
including their children to suffer. (A History of Poverty in America, n.d.)
As discussed above, society has put a stigma on the poor. Even in todays world we
discriminate against the poor, accusing them of using their handouts to buy alcohol or drugs.

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Granted this may be true in some cases, but many are in serious need of help. Our focus as a
country should be helping our population to get back on their feet. One-way that Hilfiker says we
motivate the poor is by placing time limits on the benefits they receive. If a person(s) is receiving
welfare from the state, there is usually a time limit on how long the person can receive those
benefits. Hilfiker explains that we believe giving time constraints will motivate people to get
back on their feet and get a job. (A History of Poverty in America, n.d.). However, this is not
always the case. In many cases when their time limit is up, the family is left with no help or
support to provide their family. The children suffer by not receiving nutritional meals, not
receiving adequate clothing, or possibly losing their homes. The discrimination will always be
there, even when we say we want to help.
Personal Beliefs
Poverty of any kind is devastating, not only to our society but to the people involved.
Personally I believe that poverty should be a top priority in our country. I understand that there
are people who try and manipulate the system, which causes others to step away from the
situation and not want to help. Not everyone who is receiving public assistance is manipulating
the system and I believe they truly need our help. I feel that no child should have to worry about
when their next meal will be, or if they will have warm clothes and shoes for the winter. I
certainly believe that we need to help the world but we need to start with our own backyard.
Providing public assistance is a huge step in the right direction but we need to do more. Our
country needs to provide meals for the children at school and ensure they are being fed. Many
children eat while they are at school but when they leave, their next meal might not be until the
next day. There are very generous people in our country who are willing to help our own people,
but we all need to come together and help those in need.

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Causes of the Problem

Pinpointing one specific cause of the problem is difficult. Poverty has always been apart
of our society and I dont see an end in sight. The way our society works, with each individual
class, there will always be a lower class and poverty. It keeps the motivation and competition
alive in our society. There are situations of people simply not wanting to work and manipulating
the system, but I dont believe this is the majority. There is not one root cause of poverty and we
as a society need to come together to put an end to it all.
Social Work Values and Ethics
As a social worker we are obligated to provide the best care to our clients. One of our
values in National Association of Social Workers, Code of Ethics, is social justice. Social
workers should be acting on the belief of challenging the social system and promote change for
those in poverty. Providing service is another value that related to the issue of poverty. There
may be instances where a family is living on little to no income and it is our job to provide them
with referrals and resources to get back on their feet. However, this family may not be able to
afford the services of the social worker. In this case, the social worker may want to volunteer
their time and/or skill to this particular client, known as pro bono service (Code of Ethics, 2008).
It is important to know that we are the ones who are looking out for the clients best interest and
there may be situations where the clients cannot afford the services but really need our help.

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References
Garbarino, James, (1996). Children and Poverty in America. National Forum. 76 (6), pp.5
Gennentian, L., Castells, N., Morris, P., (2010). Meeting basic needs of children: Does income
matter? Children and Youth Services Review. 32, pp.1138-1148
Gregory, C., Deb, P., (2015). Does SNAP improve your health?. Food Policy. 50, pp.11-19
Paterson, J., (2000). Welfare Reform and Inequality: The TANF and UI Programs. Journal of
Economic Issues. 34 (2), pp.517-526
Department of Human Services. TANF. [ONLINE] Available at:
http://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=30358. [Last Accessed 28 January, 2015].
National Center for Children in Poverty, Child Poverty. [ONLINE] Available at:
http://www.nccp.org/topics/childpoverty [Last Accessed 28 January 2015].
Fisher, G. (1992). The Development and History of the Poverty Thresholds. Social Security
Bulletin, 55(4), 3-14. Retrieved February 25, 2015, from ProQuest.
U.S. Department of Labor - Wage and Hour Division (WHD) - Minimum Wage. (n.d.). Retrieved
February 28, 2015, from http://www.dol.gov/whd/minwage/coverage.htm
Laderchi, C., Saith, R., & Stewart, F. (2003). Does it Matter That We Do Not Agree on the
Definition of Poverty? A Comparison of Four Approaches. Oxford Development Studies,
31(3), 243-274.

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10 of the Richest (and Poorest) Countries in the World. (2015, February 14). Retrieved March 1,
2015, from http://wallstcheatsheet.com/business/10-of-the-richest-and-poorest-countriesin-the-world.html/?a=viewall
Hilfiker, D. (n.d.). A History of Poverty in America: All Chapters. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from
http://www.onbeing.org/program/seeing-poverty-after-katrina/extra/history-povertyamerica-all-chapters/2158
National Association of Social Workers, Code of Ethics. (2008). Retrieved February 14, 2015,
from http://www.socialworkers.org/pubs/code/code.asp