Who Knew There Was So Much Poverty? The Poor, That's Who

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Published on Friday, January 13, 2012 by [font color="green"]CommonDreams.org[/font]
Who Knew There Was So Much Poverty? The Poor, That's Who

by Donna Smith


Last evening, Tavis Smiley hosted a program that was broadcast live on C-SPAN live and that focused for two-and-a-half hours on the issue of poverty in America. It was terrific. The energy and commitment of the experts assembled to investigate and help alleviate poverty made the conversation rich beyond anything I’ve seen in ages. Each panelist came at the topic from a different perspective. That added to the richness of the discussion about being poor in America.

Good stuff, Michael Moore, Cornell West, Barbara Ehrenreich, Suze Orman, Majora Carter, Roger A. Clay, Jr, and all who participated as panelists or who helped pull this together. If you didn’t see this show, Remaking America, from Poverty to Prosperity, you can watch it in C-SPAN’s archives. And you can find out more at Smiley’s website.

Even though I’ve been through the slide from middle-income to poor and now am fighting the unwinnable fight to climb back out, I still need the affirmation these sorts of discussions can give to remember that it still isn’t my fault. The system crushed me, and the system will crush me again unless I stay intensely vigilant -- and maybe it will crush me again even if I do. But I do not want to stay vigilant about the wrong things.

I want a life without the terror of poverty. I hate fearing what I cannot control. It’s worse than any horror movie could ever be. I do not want a lot of stuff. I do want some peace. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/01/13-12