"Myth 1: The United States is fundamentally a classless society. Class distinctions are largely irrelevant today, and whatever differences do exist in economic standing, they are - for the most part- insignificant...
Myth 2: We are, essentially, a middle-class nation...
Myth 3: We are all getting richer. The American public as a whole is steadily moving up the economic ladder, and each generation propels itself to greater economic well-being...
Myth 4: Everyone has an equal chance to succeed...
Reality 1: There are enormous differences in the economic standing of American citizens. A sizable proportion of the U.S. population occupies opposite ends of the economic spectrum. In the middle ranger of the economic spectrum:
Sixty percent of the American population holds less than 6 percent of the nation's wealth....
...Between 1979 and 2000, the gap in household income between the top fifth and middle fifth of the population by 31 percent. During the economic boom of the 19990s, four out of five Americans saw their share of net worth decline, while the top fifth saw their share increase from 59 percent to 63 percent....
Reality 2: The middle class in the United States hold a very small share of the nation's wealth and that share is declining steadily. The gap between rich and poor and between rich and the middle class is larger than it has even been.
Reality 3: ... Class affects more than life-style and material well-being. It has significant impact on our physical and mental well-being as well. Researchers have found an inverse relationship between social class and health. Lower-class standing is correlated to higher rates of infant mortality, eye and ear disease, arthritis, physical disability, diabetes, nutritional deficiency, respiratory disease, mental illness, and heart disease...
Reality 4: From cradle to grave, the class standing has a significant impact on our chances for survival.
Reality 5: Class standing has a significant impact on chances for educational achievement. Class standing, and consequently life chances, are largely determined at birth… One study showed that fewer than one in five men surpass the economic status of their fathers. For those whose annual income is in six figures, economic success is due in large part to the wealth and privileges bestowed on them at birth.”
(Mantsios, Class in America- 2003)
This article, the myths and realities Mantsios addresses show that in fact people in the United States do not have the simple, easy, freedom of just becoming rich and it is not just a matter of working hard to get there. The class system and the power of oppression keep citizens in the classes they are born into. One who is born into a lower class in the U.S. is at a constant disadvantage from birth. The statistics Mantsios uses illustrate the economic gap between the rich and the middle class and the rich and the poor in the United States- showing an increase in the gap: “the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.” The fact that laws and the class systems are acting as traps to keep the people in poverty, or at least keep them from becoming affluent, is a violent act. And as an even more literal act of violence, even though it isn't much of an act, the correlation between poverty and disease is outrageous. And so again, poverty is violence.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Making Class Invisible
“When the media doesn’t turn its attention to the poor, it offers a series of contradictory messages and portrayals.”
“In another example of media coverage, we are told that the poor live in a personal and cultural cycle of poverty that hopelessly imprisons them.”-Media Magic by Gregory Mantsios
In the article Media Magic, Mantsios proves the point that poverty is violence. Instead of people and media helping the poor, they just use the impoverished people to portray contradictory messages and create negative statistics. Therefore, by us not helping the impoverished people is the same as if we’re inflicting violence upon them. The media seems to recognize and also help the public to recognize how poor the impoverished actually are yet no one seems to take the time to help them out. In the article it states that “the media tells us that the affluent in our society are a kind, understanding, giving people- which we are not.”
“Economic data show that huge swaths of low- and middle-income families, both in California and across the nation, are barely scraping by. By many measures, their living standards are stagnating or declining as the prices of such necessities as food, fuel and medicine rise faster than wages.”
- “Rich getting richer, poor getting poorer” by Sam Zuckerman
- http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/09/BUVI10258K.DTL
This quote from the article “Rich are getting richer, poor getting poorer” clearly proves that the media is aware and makes it aware for others to see what the low income families are going through. This also gives the impression that wealthier people are greedy, which in some cases can be proven to be true. One cannot argue that the wealthy is unaware of the lower class families out there suffering. Yet, no one takes precautions and instead, just lets them be.
The picture above I feel portrays an image as well a quote that relates to the information. "The rich is getting richer as the poor is getting poorer." That quote just proves more that the rich is all about themselves. As poorer families continue to get poor, richer ones continuously get richer. Yet, they do not help the poor people they just go on living their lives as if everything is fine but by them not giving the poor help is the same as if their inflicting violence.
“In another example of media coverage, we are told that the poor live in a personal and cultural cycle of poverty that hopelessly imprisons them.”-Media Magic by Gregory Mantsios
In the article Media Magic, Mantsios proves the point that poverty is violence. Instead of people and media helping the poor, they just use the impoverished people to portray contradictory messages and create negative statistics. Therefore, by us not helping the impoverished people is the same as if we’re inflicting violence upon them. The media seems to recognize and also help the public to recognize how poor the impoverished actually are yet no one seems to take the time to help them out. In the article it states that “the media tells us that the affluent in our society are a kind, understanding, giving people- which we are not.”
“Economic data show that huge swaths of low- and middle-income families, both in California and across the nation, are barely scraping by. By many measures, their living standards are stagnating or declining as the prices of such necessities as food, fuel and medicine rise faster than wages.”
- “Rich getting richer, poor getting poorer” by Sam Zuckerman
- http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/09/BUVI10258K.DTL
This quote from the article “Rich are getting richer, poor getting poorer” clearly proves that the media is aware and makes it aware for others to see what the low income families are going through. This also gives the impression that wealthier people are greedy, which in some cases can be proven to be true. One cannot argue that the wealthy is unaware of the lower class families out there suffering. Yet, no one takes precautions and instead, just lets them be.
The picture above I feel portrays an image as well a quote that relates to the information. "The rich is getting richer as the poor is getting poorer." That quote just proves more that the rich is all about themselves. As poorer families continue to get poor, richer ones continuously get richer. Yet, they do not help the poor people they just go on living their lives as if everything is fine but by them not giving the poor help is the same as if their inflicting violence.
"Maria Full of Grace"
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Here is an x-ray of a mule's stomach. Everyday that passes more and more people are turning to this as a means of some income. The people who do this are good people who are just in a tight situation and need help.
Scene: Blanca and Maria Talk
Blanca finds out that Maria is going to serve as a mule and decides she wants to join. Her family needs all the help they can get and she knows the money is very much needed. Maria tries to convince her otherwise, but Blanca responds by saying, “Do you know how much 5,000 dollars is in pesos? I can buy my family a house.” Blanca and Maria resorted to serving as mules in order to try and withstand the poverty they were living in.
Scene: Lucy Dies
Mules all know the consequences of swallowing drugs and transporting them to another country. They can die, end up arrested, or in customs. Lucy’s death however was horrific because Maria ended up finding her with her stomach cut open. Lucy wasn’t feeling well and most likely one of the pellets burst inside of her. Therefore, in order to get the rest of the drugs out, which is what the drug traffickers only cared about they cut her open. Lucy wasn’t a bad person and she didn’t deserve to die that way, but like many people in her country she needed the money.
“Poverty is Violence”
It was very difficult to get a job in Columbia and the ones who did never had enough to support their family because the wages were too low. As a result, drugs were seen as an easy way to get some cash. This was because when sold in another country, normally the United States it was sold at a good value and so mules were offered a good price for their service. In most developing countries there are those who are poor and those who are wealthy. The government for these countries doesn’t do much to help the people who are suffering economically and so since there are no jobs and no help they resort to other things like transporting drugs as a way out. Poverty is violence, the Governement acting as if everything was okay and not helping the poor communties in their country is the same as the act of violence.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Life and Debt Lyrics
Mutabaruka- Life and Debt Lyrics
Dem an' dem economical plan
Still cant find a solution
Borrowin money fe lend
World bank a nuh wi fr'en
Is life an'debt all a wi a fret
Life an' debt freedom not yet
Farmers get a blow
Foreign food suh an'suh
Amerikan farmer get a upper hand
W'ile our farmers goin' one be one
Bank crash..pay slash news flash
Big bway hide 'im stash
Nuh money nuh job
Borrowin money fi lend..
Capitalism a nuh wi fren
Caricom carry gone everyt'ing
Too much importin'debt increase
Country deh pon lease
Politicians a fraud
De people draw bad card
T'ings nuh cool
Dem teck wi fi fool
Gun shot in de street
Blood pon sheet
Sour nuh sweet
But t'ings afi tun
Or a pure fire bunn
Someone will 'ave to pay
Nuh more man out a clay
Nuh more blind faith
Wi need food inna wi plate
Look how long wi a sweat
Too much foreign debt
When one thinks of Jamaica one thing that comes to mind first is music, the legendary Bob Marley and reggae- and with these portraits of music come the stereotype of laid back and happy music and the presumed that if their music is happy then all Jamaicans are happy. But this song does not fit those characteristics- it is realistic and explains the injustices and abuse that the natives recieve in the hands of debt. The following verse, "Capitalism a nuh wi fren, Caricom carry gone everyt'ing, Too much importin'debt increase, Country deh pon lease, Politicians a fraud, De people draw bad card, T'ings nuh cool, Dem teck wi fi fool," shows the anger and disappointment of the people in the capital system that has been pushed on them- the system that keeps them impoverished. And all of the emotions in the song (e.g. sadness, anger, hopelessness...) are similar to the emotions one would feel if they had been violently beaten.
Life and Debt
“Longtime development is your problem” - Michael Manley – Former Prime Minister of Jamaica
In these videos it is explained how Jamaica, no matter how much it pleads no one is willing to offer them any help that could pull them out of the debt. The international bank refuses to provide them with loans and instead blames Jamaica's debt on them. Even though it is known and obvious that the imports Jamaica is dependent on as the professor states, and the insufficient exports they are able to make are hindering their ability to produce enough money, to pay back loans to get rid of the debt, instead of accumulating it. But nobody decides to help Jamaica, instead all of the loans the bank gives them only devalues their own currency. Generous loans could be given to Jamaica and a longterm plan as well, but it is apparently "[their] problem." The unwillingness of the national bank to help Jamaica only maintains all of the poverty in Jamaica. Witch hurts the young children and their education, it hurts teh farmers and the factory workers. Globalization keeps Jamaica impoverished. When violence is "using force to injure or abuse," keeping Jamaica in debt uses the economic force other countries have to continue to exploit the natives- supporting the statement poverty is violence.
A Small Place
A Small Place
An ugly thing, that is what you are when you become a tourist, an ugly, empty thing, a stupid thing, a piece of rubbish pausing here and there to gaze at this and taste that, and it will never occur to you that people who inhabit the place in which you have just paused cannot stand you, that behind their closed doors they laugh at your strangeness… They do not like you. They do not like me! That thought never actually occurs to you… (Kincaid, 17)
Why is the tourist an ugly thing? The tourist is rubbish for the same reason; they come into the country completely oblivious of the status of the native people- a tourist is therefore uneducated and seems stupid because the ones who travel to Jamaica have only a false preconceived notion that all Jamaicans are lively and happy people. Sure, they can be optimistic but that doesn’t detract from their economic status and the struggles they go through. A reason why tourists are hated is because they shelter themselves in the resorts and choose to ignore the poor. They don’t even think about lending a helping hand to the people who struggle to get by in Jamaica everyday. It is the negligence that is just as detrimental as if the tourists were to arrive in Jamaica and decide to beat on the locals that wait them.
An ugly thing, that is what you are when you become a tourist, an ugly, empty thing, a stupid thing, a piece of rubbish pausing here and there to gaze at this and taste that, and it will never occur to you that people who inhabit the place in which you have just paused cannot stand you, that behind their closed doors they laugh at your strangeness… They do not like you. They do not like me! That thought never actually occurs to you… (Kincaid, 17)
Why is the tourist an ugly thing? The tourist is rubbish for the same reason; they come into the country completely oblivious of the status of the native people- a tourist is therefore uneducated and seems stupid because the ones who travel to Jamaica have only a false preconceived notion that all Jamaicans are lively and happy people. Sure, they can be optimistic but that doesn’t detract from their economic status and the struggles they go through. A reason why tourists are hated is because they shelter themselves in the resorts and choose to ignore the poor. They don’t even think about lending a helping hand to the people who struggle to get by in Jamaica everyday. It is the negligence that is just as detrimental as if the tourists were to arrive in Jamaica and decide to beat on the locals that wait them.
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