There is a movement in America today that aims to abandon all social programs that help people living in poverty. Taking away from the poor and giving to the rich, upper middle and middle class.
Living under a bridge used to be for many their worst nightmare. Today, around the world, there are entire communities living under overpasses, on wastelands, in cemeteries and in mega-slums. The homeless many times are brutally evicted without any place to go, ending up again relocating to another overcrowded mega-slum.
The faces of poverty can be dramatically different depending on the country. The poverty you see in places like India and Bangladesh where many people are living and working in garbage dumps, under apocalyptic conditions, is very different then what you see in Japan. The people living under Tokyo’s bridges, in cardboard boxes, are very clean. The homeless community in Japan has access to showers, libraries and small jobs. Although there is assistance from the Japanese government for the poor, some of the homeless refuse to take it as the aid comes with a letter to the poor persons’ family letting them know that their love one has succumbed to extreme poverty.
In many Latin nations, poverty quickly turns into crime. Unlike the pacifism brought up by Hinduism in India, in circumstances of desperation, hungry Latin Christians become angry. With economic pressures, small crime turns into violent crime. The society suffers and mega-cities can quickly resemble a war zone.
Most of the time, American’s do not hide their jewelry when they go out of their homes. Kids do not come home half naked and shoeless after being robbed on the way to school. Further, people do not park their luxury automobiles in their living room because driving an expensive car could cost them their lives.
Tossing poverty into our gutters will not make it go away and will only fester into crime. Large gaps between economic classes can nurture a caste system and destroy a society.
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