We’ve Got Questions, But Whose Has Answers?
Poverty. A complex word for a complex problem. Poverty is a multi-dimensional, non-binary problem that affects a large amount of people in the United States. More specifically, poverty impacts the people of Philadelphia. The PEW Charitable Trusts stated that Philadelphia’s poverty rate in 2015 was “25.8 percent”, and that for the last decade Philadelphia “has had the highest poverty rate of the nation’s 10 largest cities.” But who should we, the journalists, communicators and media specialists, look to for answers?
The answer is simple: the people. Which lead my friend, Septime, and I to venture out on a brisk Tuesday morning in March looking for answers for in the Germantown area of Philadelphia. We canvassed on behalf of the Listening Post, WHYY, RESOLVE Philly and the Klein School of Media and Communications. As we asked everyday people their thoughts, stories, and reflections concerning money and finances, we noticed certain trends in the answers. People of all shapes, sizes, ages and backgrounds explained their differing situations, but all emphasized the power of unity and connection. From a school teacher relying on her parents, to a young barber whose mentor shaped his career, everyone stated that having a support system was vital to their financial survival.
Everyone who we came into contact with did not have a solution to the poverty problem in Philadelphia, but by shedding their personal insights about the system brings more personalized perspectives to the issue. With more intimate stories about this issue, trends, correlations and solutions can be used to influence policy makers in a new way.
As a graduate student and human being, this process brought out certain emotions, specifically a mixture of sadness and gratitude. Sadness — because I myself cannot immediately change anyone’s personal situation, and gratitude — because so many people were willing to share their own stories with us. Stories that were real, describing real life events, difficult hardships and, sometimes, unimaginable tragedies that alters one’s perspective and understanding of poverty, love and life. Although our research questions were answered, the underlining solution to poverty still remains unresolved. I hope that the work of Temple University, the Listening Post, RESOLVE Philly and WHYY will play a role in solving it, and I hope that the people of Philadelphia keep sharing their stories.
