Reflection: Poverty Awareness Month
We have had a recognized opportunity to deeply focus on Poverty in America through a historic and systemic lens every January since Poverty Awareness Month was formally recognized and established by Congress in 2009. This, however, is not the origin of national discussions around poverty in America. That conversation has origins in 1964, with the “Great Society” speech delivered President Lyndon Johnson. He introduced the Office of Economic Opportunity and the Economic Opportunity Act.
Each January as we celebrate the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr holiday (established 1983, first celebrated 1986) we know that Dr. King also discussed poverty and its impacts in several of his speeches; I Have a Dream (1963), Nobel Peace Prize acceptance (1964), Where Do We Go From Here? (1968). Dr. King’s words from his 1967 speech states that “Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation,” and that “America has not met its obligations and its responsibilities to the poor.”
Fast forward to the present day, to children and families in Minnesota. In 2023, the poverty rate for families with children was 8.5%. Data shows that in 2022, approximately 17.4% of People of Color in MN earned incomes below the poverty level.
Poverty and Child Welfare have long been and continue to be connected, researched and discussed. We see that there is a higher report of surveillance of families experiencing poverty. For those of us who seek to support and uplift families impacted by poverty, who also engage within our child welfare system, there is much to be ingested and pondered.
The question we hold is this: isn’t it better for everyone if we create better access to services for families living in poverty rather than remove the children from their homes? By providing services so families can help themselves out of poverty, we build adults that contribute to society, interrupt generational poverty, and children remain with their families. An added benefit is our child welfare system is more available to serve the children that are in situations with true safety concerns – the children the system was designed to serve. How do we come together and help families lift themselves out of poverty?
We are taking this opportunity to illuminate content towards increasing learning.
- Surveillance of Mothers Living in Poverty: Effects on Children, Families and Communities, 2024
- Child Welfare Information Gateway: Separating Poverty From Neglect, 2023
- National Conference of State Legislatures: Poverty and Child Neglect: How Did We Get It Wrong, 2023
If you are reading this post on the Sauer FF social media, please feel free to share articles or information that you find promising, heavy or that resonates.
Reflecting on long-challenging issues in January can provide an opportunity for reflection, processing and learning. Perhaps it can help frame how each of us shows up in the coming year.
– Sheri