According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2010 income for American households dropped, poverty increased, and the numbers of Americans without health insurance slightly increased; 46.2 million Americans were in poverty and 49.9 million without health insurance. In 2009, 43.6 million Americans were in poverty and 49 million without health insurance. The average American household income in 2010 was $49,445, a 2.3 percent decline from 2009.
The data shows the severity of poverty in America, particularly in the southern United States.
Kristina Scott, executive director of the Alabama Poverty Project, said in a phone interview that a family of four living on $22,000 a year has a hard time obtaining basic daily needs and is considered in poverty. “It is very difficult to emerge from poverty. When you are in poverty, you struggle to buy food every single day and always think ‘How can I make the money and make it today?’ Every single day is an immediate emergency for a person in poverty,” said Scott.
According to Scott, a family of four needs at least $44,000 a year to meet basic needs and $66,000 dollars a year for a strong financial footing.
“For a person in poverty there is no safety net to fall back on. For example, last week my car had a flat tire. I could deal with it because I had the resources to deal with my car’s flat tire. But if you do not have those resources, like a savings or a credit card, it would be hard to deal with. It really is catastrophic for that person. If in poverty, you would have to make a choice between paying rent and getting a new tire. Of course, you would need a new tire because the next worry would be how to get to work,” said Scott.
In Alabama, which has a population of 4.7 million, the number of people in poverty jumped from 15.9 percent in 2010 to 17.5 percent in 2011, according to data from Alabama Poverty Project.
The numbers do not get better for the rest of the South.
The census reported the Southern United States as having an increase both in poverty rates and numbers of people in poverty. The poverty rate in the Southern states was 16.9 percent and 19.1 million people were in poverty in 2010, compared to 15.7 percent and 17.6 million in 2009. Rates could become higher while numbers of people in poverty became lower if population fell, from people migrating to other regions, for example.
“What we have in Alabama is unemployment of 10 percent, a historical multigenerational poverty, and the middle class is falling to being in poverty,” said Scott.
Alabama has had a complex economy since the land was added as a star on the U.S. flag. Slavery, segregation, rural living, low land ownership, low taxes, unskilled jobs with low pay, and the need for better education are perhaps some reasons why Alabama’s economy failed to do better in the past.
“Education is closely aligned with work. Increasing educational opportunities and encouraging our student to go to college can help. A workforce with post secondary education will attract employers,” said Scott.
Looking to the future, Scott said, “We have nearly 20 percent of people in poverty and in this mood of meeting immediate needs it is difficult to get beyond that and look into the future. We are hardworking and generous. We want to and we can do better. We need to come together and find out the root cause of poverty.”
