Understanding Poverty through Lived Experiences

Within the last few years, COVID-19, environmental disasters, the housing affordability crisis, increased homelessness, and inflation have brought poverty in the United States into sharper focus. Gaining an understanding of poverty necessitates not only an examination of macro trends and patterns, but also insights into people’s everyday experiences at the micro-level. This reader brings together key topics such as food, housing, and health insecurities; spatial and environmental inequalities; employment and low wage work; social institutions; discrimination; and social change to make the study of poverty more accessible to students. It emphasizes that many kinds of people experience poverty, but also highlights how racism, sexism, homophobia, age, family structure, geographic location and other social forces can increase economic vulnerability and create barriers to economic mobility. The book opens with an introduction that defines poverty in the U.S. while also discussing the importance of looking beyond statistics and trends. Discussion questions at the end of each reading encourage critical thinking and reinforce key ideas.