Poverty isn’t a permanent place that someone lives in; in fact, most people flow in and out of living in poverty throughout their lives. Living paycheck to paycheck is relatively normal today. Therefore, missing a paycheck due to sickness or another issue could cause a surge in the direction of poverty and hinder the ability to pay rent on time or buy groceries for your family.
A recent discussion and training session brought together college-aged interns with community advocates who have experienced life on the bottom rung of the economic ladder in Charlotte. The wide-ranging conversation allowed participants to put themselves in the shoes of the people they will serve and to think a bit differently about the lives of people in poverty.
I’m skeptical when I hear people talk about life-altering, perspective-shifting experiences. So, when I came home to tell my roommate that I had just experienced one of the most powerful and transformative two hours of my life, I recognized the incredulous face looking back at me.
For the first time, the community has access to local-level details of where, why, and how tenants are evicted in Mecklenburg County. Inspired by the award-winning book, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, and author Matthew Desmond’s visit here last year, UNC Charlotte’s Urban Institute set out to study eviction at the local level.
A Few Thousand Dollars: Sparking Prosperity for Everyone. Author and Prosperity Now founder Bob Friedman makes the case for a revised tax code that could fund a universal savings program in order to close the racial wealth divide in America.
