the girl effect

eloquent and truth, pass it on... thanks, glory!

Anti-poverty Advocates in New Jersey Outline Goals

Poverty Foes Gather to Map Successes, Unreached Goals
Thursday, December 06, 2007
BY SUSAN K. LIVIO Star-Ledger Staff

Poverty remains a stubborn problem in this wealthy state because some government programs are too cash-starved or poorly executed to make a difference, anti-poverty advocates said yesterday.

Gearing up for the annual fight to make low-income people a priority in next year's state budget, members of the Anti-Poverty Network outlined their goals: Expanding FamilyCare, the state's low-cost health care program, and the state's rental assistance program, and raising the monthly welfare grant, which has remained flat since 1987.

As state officials gear up to close an estimated $3 billion budget deficit next year, advocates said they'll be ready to make their case with new statistics demonstrating that poverty is growing, which government-funded programs work and why some don't.

"We hear so much about what cannot be done in the state budget," Melville D. Miller, executive director of Legal Services of New Jersey, and a network member. He said that too often, elected officials make budget decisions by pitting anti-poverty programs against each other or against other social programs.

"We can't permit New Jersey state government to frame the debate that way," Miller said. "Society should not accept cuts which balance the state budget on the backs of low-income people."

One in five New Jersey residents last year lived in "true poverty" -- twice the federal government's meager poverty rate, or an annual income of less than $32,158 for a family of three, according to Serena Rice, managing director of Legal Services' Poverty Research Institute.

The state created a rental assistance program and dedicated $37.5 million this budget year, which shares the cost of rent with about 3,000 families, state Department of Community Affairs spokesman Chris Donnelly said. But advocates have said the need is closer to 90,000 affordable housing units. "We have not even reached the down payment level," Miller said.

Welfare would seem to be the program most directly aimed at people in severe poverty, yet the monthly grants have not risen in 20 years, Miller said. That means a family of three, then and now, received $424 a month, and a childless adult received $140 a month.

Human Services Commissioner Jennifer Velez, who addressed the conference, said she shares many of the same priorities. She said the state's fiscal health isn't the only obstacle.

Velez said the "not in my backyard" attitude stymies efforts to expand affordable housing and rental assistance programs. "With all the money in the world, we couldn't go into some communities," Velez said.

Expanding the state children's health insurance program -- or FamilyCare, as it's known in New Jersey -- would require a dramatic departure from President Bush's position that the program ought to serve only the poorest of children and none of their parents.

Yesterday's annual "state of the state" anti-poverty conference, held at the War Memorial in Trenton, was also an exercise in energizing the advocates by reminding them of their past accomplishments.

The network, composed of 300 religious, educational and social service organizations, successfully lobbied to expand the state Earned Income Tax Credit that allowed 300,000 more families to qualify, said the Rev. Bruce Davidson, director of the Lutheran Office of Governmental Ministry.

Over the last two years, the Corzine administration has added $4 million for food banks, Davidson said. "When you are starting from zero, this is something to celebrate."

For more information see the Anti-poverty network.

living in poverty--sidewalk street art

today i stumbled across this message in front of the haven savings bank on washington street. i took some pixs and stood nearby and watched reactions from people passing by. most just walked on by or walked over the chalked message, oblivious, while chatting on their cells or listening to their ipods. one woman stopped, read it and looked at me, curious. but we only exchanged a few words. the old street sweeper man noticed it, took his time and read the words. on my watch, most folks just walked on by...

36 million people in the USA are in poverty <------ that's about the population of california!

update: just saw another sighting, same message in front of mcdonald's at washington and 3rd street. here's to you, street messenger, for trying to get people to think.

The Shriver Center Calls on the U.S. Government to Take Action on Poverty

New Data Finds 36.5 Million Americans in Poverty
Shriver Center Calls on Federal Government to Take Action

From the Shriver Center:

Today the Census Bureau released its figures on American poverty, and they reveal essentially no change. Poverty lingers at 12.3%, and child poverty at 17.4%. The income gap remains wide, with the top rungs of the economic ladder gaining income and everyone else languishing. And there are still 47 million Americans without health insurance.

"This is deeply disappointing, but not at all surprising," said John Bouman, president of the Sargent Shriver National Center On Poverty Law. "The Administration's posture of neglect, trickle-down tax policy, and retreat from a positive government role is predictably accomplishing nothing to reduce poverty and inequality."

This month we commemorate the Gulf hurricanes of two years ago. It is clear that success in taking on a big job like disaster relief and recovery requires more than individual initiative, private enterprise and active local government. Such an undertaking also calls for federal leadership, resources and competence. The federal government must commit to getting the job done and solicit American support. It must back leadership with strategic resources adequate to the task. And it must perform its own roles with competence and due speed. Lack of effective government is on display this month, as cameras return to New Orleans and find that so little has changed.

And today's Census Bureau numbers reveal a similar story with the fight against poverty. The administration has not attempted to rally the public to that task, not even rhetorically. Far from dedicating adequate resources, it continues to give threats and ultimatums against poor and middle class working families. Indeed, the President is poised to veto State Children's Health Insurance Program reauthorization bills passed by both houses of Congress that would dedicate funding towards millions more uninsured children.

"There is no better or easier way to make a significant gain against poverty and inequality than to guarantee that children receive preventive and early health care in order to maximize their life chances," said Bouman. "Both parties in Congress should push the investment in America's children past any presidential veto this fall."

As the presidential campaign season intensifies, the candidates' positions on the federal role in the fight against poverty should be measured carefully. We know it will take leadership, resources, and competence to make future Census Bureau reports show real progress in reducing poverty and improving equality and opportunity.

The Poor and American Idol

Bob Herbert has always been one of my favorite writers for the New York Times, and today he brings up a topic that most Americans, and especially their elected leaders, have neglected. That subject is poverty. As Herbert explains, New York City, with 700,000 millionaires, is living a modern gilded-age. The average Manhattan apartment costs about $1.5 million. A meal for 4 can easily cost $500. But for many in the Big Apple, especially public school students, that is just unbelievable.

New York is becoming, or actually has become, a tale of two cities. Mayor Bloomberg, a billionaire, is just one of the filthy rich running a city that counts 25% of its population under the federal poverty cutoff line. Herbert interviewed some students who dwelled in a world where fear of gangs, safety, and getting food stamps were commonplace.

I have listened to the candidates wax on about many things, but poverty, like Mr. Herbert reports, doesn't get much space. Maybe the politicians just don't believe that anyone votes with poverty on their mind.

Speaking about voting, last night hundreds of millions of votes were cast to decide the outcome of American Idol. The show is something that seems to cross all divides. It is definitely on American minds. Being poor in New York, well, that is a whole different show.