Since someone wants to make it politcal, let's do so. Everyone is America is not born with equal opportunity. The biggest issue facing our country isn't gay marriage, gun rights, abortion, sealing the borders, or any of the other talking points created by politicians in an attempt to win votes. It's generational poverty, and how our supposedly great nation allows a segment of our population to do without merley because they born that way.
Some people look at what's going on in Baltimore and see it as unruly, lazy black people being unappreciative of the great opportunities they are given in the land of plenty. People who truly understand the situation see poor people rightfully voicing their displeasure over the unfair hand they've been dealt. While the death of an African American may have ignited the rage, that's not why people are rioting and stealing things. They're doing it because they don't know about anything but being poor. Their grandparents were poor, their parents were poor, and now they are poor, and with little chance for a better life. Some people look at what's going in Baltimore as a "black" problem. The truth of the matter is that it's about poor people who just happen to be black. Worst of all, many people who have a better life are blaming these people for something that is not their fault.
I teach at a middle school in a rural, mostly white community in the sout. The poverty level in the communtiy is more than 35 percent. While we'd like to think that education the children will help fix the problem for future generations, reality tells us that's just a pipe dream. I have students who live under truly deplorable conditions. When you have to worry about where you'll be sleeping at night or where your next meal will come from, balancing equations or learning to read or write isn't all that important. For many of these kids, their life is about survival. Theseb kids have been poor every single day of their lives, and in the future will either continue being poor or wind up being incarcerated. Yet the haves in our society want to think that these people want to live this way. They want to beleive that the poor and the homeless are the blame for their plight because they're unappreciative of our "great" country. Great country, my butt. A great country doesn't allow a segment of its population to live in poverty just because they were born that way. And great people don't pretend it's not their problem, when in fact this problem belongs to all of us. Ask yourselves this: what are YOU doing about this problem? Are you making our elected officials address this problem, or are you burying your head in the sand like so many people do?
Unfortunately, most people will ignore this problem come election time. They'll cast their votes according to how they feel about gay marriage, guns, abortion, border control, or some other non-important issue. The last thing on their mind will be generational poverty, which is the only issue that truly matters. They'll ignore the issue, and then express outrage the next time the poor and oppressed show their rage by rioting. Worse yet, they'll blame the poor people for being angry. History repeats, and we never learn from it.
