When you think of a child who is experiencing poverty what
first comes to mind? For me, an image of the television showing a hungry poor
colored child somewhere far away flashes through my mind. Though this image that flashes in my head is
somewhat correct, it does not touch on the real issues of poverty and what
causes deficiencies all over the world. In an article entitled, Children and Poverty: Voices of Children, by Boyden, Et. all (2003)
it was stated that, “People (including children) experience poverty not simply
as a lack of goods and resources, but through the complex interplay of material
insufficiency, social marginalization, humiliation, and distress” (p. 9). Boyden, Et. all (2003) continued to discuss
how poverty is popularized by society and the media simply as inadequate food
supply and poor education (p.9) So, it makes sense that the first thing that
came to my mind when thinking of a child in poverty was the child on the television
commercial who is hungry. In order to really understand and combat such an
intense issue like poverty, one must first understand what poverty is to
different ages of individuals, what poverty looks like to different genders,
and also what is considered poverty in different societies. For the purposes of this discussion, I will be
focusing my ideas around children and adults experiencing poverty in a
developing country.
In the article, Children
and Poverty: A Review of Contemporary literature and thought on Children and Poverty,
by Boyden & Feeny (2003), they stated
that the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child or the CRC defines a child as
someone below the age of 18 and this definition will be used in this discussion
when referring to a child. An adult will be referred to anyone over 18 years of
age (p. 2). In many situations of poverty it is normal for
children to work in some capacity in order to help the family endure. This type
of work depends on the family and the culture and can look vastly different.
For example, during my stay in Ethiopia two summers ago, children were
obligated to work, but whether they lived in the bustling city or the rural countryside
determined what type of work that child was expected to do. In Addis Ababa, the
capital city, it was common for children to have a job shining shoes for business
men on their way to work or selling various goods at a stand on the side of the
road. In Lalibella, a more rural area, children were expected to help their
mother clean, cook, and take care of the younger children. It was not uncommon
that a 7 year old girl would walk a few miles daily carrying a clay pot on her
head and a younger sibling on her back to fetch water for the family. Through their research depicted on their
website, Young Lives (2014) concluded that both children in the example above
do face poverty, which the child in the city will fare better than the child in
the rural countryside. Young Lives (2014) stated, “We find that children who
lives in the poorest households are often denied access to healthcare and
education, or have access to poorer quality services, and children in urban communities
obtain better services than those living in rural area.”
Patriarchal societies are one significant way in which
female children and adult women experience poverty in the same capacity. In the
book, Celebrating Children edited by
Miles & Wright (2003), they affirmed that, “Neither woman nor children are
consulted in decisions that affect them” (p. 34). Young Lives (2014) also touched on the issue
of gender inequality on their website. They alleged that gender equality would
be one strong force to help end poverty. They stated that women and girls who
are educated have better opportunities of earning a higher income as well as
having a say in life altering choices like marriage and having their own
children.
According to a paper entitled, Making the Case for Child Poverty, by Alberto Minujin(2009) he
stated that child poverty, “…differs from adult poverty in that it has
different causes and effects, and the impact of poverty during childhood has
permanent effects on children. An
example that Minujin (2009) gave was how poverty in the form of malnutrition can
affect the health and education of a child which could have a long term impact
on the child’s development capacity. As
stated by Miles and Wright (2003) children need to be seen as a whole person
which includes a child’s “physical, social, mental or cognitive, emotional,
moral and spiritual elements” (p.4). Poverty is not an easy topic to wrap one’s
mind around. Poverty affects children in different ways that it affects adults.
Although poverty is not desirable for anyone, it tends to be more detrimental when
children experience poverty because it assists in the longer term impacts that
a child could face.
Sources
Boyden, Et. all (2003). Children and Poverty. Voices of children. CFC.
Boyden & Feeny (2003). Children and Poverty. A review of contemporary literature and thought
on
children
and poverty. CFC.
Miles,
G & Wright J-J. (2003). Celebrating children: Equipping people working with children
and
young people living in difficult circumstances around the
world. Carlisle: Paternoster.
Minujin,
A. (2009, August 1). Making the Case for Child Poverty. Retrieved September 10,
2014, from
http://www.unicef.org/socialpolicy/files/Insights_Aug_09_Eng.pdf
Young
Lives. (2014, April 10). What inequality means for children. Retrieved
September 10, 2014, from
http://www.younglives.org.uk/our-themes/what-inequality-m
