Dougherty Arts Center
More Emphasis Needed on Problem of Extreme Poverty
RECEIVED Thu., April 30, 2009
Dear Editor,
I write to raise awareness and hopefully convince some to act. As morally conscious as most Austinites seem to be, I believe that a greater emphasis on the problem of extreme poverty, living on less than $1.25 per day, would lead to greater involvement. More than 20,000 human beings die every day because they are stuck in a poverty trap; they have to use all or more of their resources in order to survive, and they do not have any margin of income above survival to save and invest in the future. There are many organizations in place here in Austin that work every day to improve and save lives such as the Whole Planet Foundation and A Glimmer of Hope. Although there are great efforts by these and similar organizations in the area who work to alleviate poverty, there are issues that they cannot address. These issues include corrupt governments and dept repayment taking priority over the livelihood of citizens. These issues could be addressed with the vast amount of U.S. dollars that are wasted in the bureaucratic process that leaves only a fraction of the intended amount of aid money to actually be used to reduce poverty. Although a complex issue, extreme poverty has implications in the lives of every citizen of the world because of the national security component, moral responsibility of the wealthy nations of the world, and the benefits to our country’s economy. I am shocked that the extreme poverty issue is not present in the media, especially in a city like Austin.
I write to raise awareness and hopefully convince some to act. As morally conscious as most Austinites seem to be, I believe that a greater emphasis on the problem of extreme poverty, living on less than $1.25 per day, would lead to greater involvement. More than 20,000 human beings die every day because they are stuck in a poverty trap; they have to use all or more of their resources in order to survive, and they do not have any margin of income above survival to save and invest in the future. There are many organizations in place here in Austin that work every day to improve and save lives such as the Whole Planet Foundation and A Glimmer of Hope. Although there are great efforts by these and similar organizations in the area who work to alleviate poverty, there are issues that they cannot address. These issues include corrupt governments and dept repayment taking priority over the livelihood of citizens. These issues could be addressed with the vast amount of U.S. dollars that are wasted in the bureaucratic process that leaves only a fraction of the intended amount of aid money to actually be used to reduce poverty. Although a complex issue, extreme poverty has implications in the lives of every citizen of the world because of the national security component, moral responsibility of the wealthy nations of the world, and the benefits to our country’s economy. I am shocked that the extreme poverty issue is not present in the media, especially in a city like Austin.
Joseph Ortega
