How Does Poverty Affect The Community

Growing up in poverty can have a tremendous effect on those living within the indigence as well as the community itself. These areas are often filled with minorities, especially African-Americans, which struggle with inadequate education, minimum wage jobs, and very little resources to create a better lifestyle for their families. A large portion of these families relies on government assistance, non-profit organizations, and often time’s churches to help them through there troubled times. Individuals experiencing these hardships sometimes fall victim again whether it’s to drug abuse/addiction, drug dealing, gang involvement, prostitution, and many other aspects of crime. However, not everyone within the community accept these living conditions …show more content…
had a problem with crime in their city with gang violence, drug dealing, turf wars, and murder. It got so bad that the city’s housing commissioner had the papers drawn for the neighborhood where most of these problems occurred to be demolished. He felt bad about it because people who lived in this low income-housing neighborhood, who weren’t apart of the nonsense, would have nowhere to go. He felt like this was his last resort because previously the police got involved trying to reduce the violence/crime but the gangs were ready to go to battle with them for trying to intervene. However, before the demolition process could be completed he called it off when he read a section in the local newspaper advertising a truce between the rival gangs mediated by a community activist group call Alliance of Concerned Men. Alliance of Concerned Men was a group of six ex-convicts from the local community turned community activist. They were the only source that was able to gain the attention of the gangs because of their “street” similarities. This truce was sparked after a 12 year-old boy was kidnapped, and murdered in the mist of the beef. After the truce the rival gangs partook in cleaning the community together by washing graffiti off of the housing buildings, and planted flowers/grass in hopes of building a better environment. The gangs also had members who got jobs in construction, office management, and telemarketing. The ex-gang member who eventually worked his way up to the supervising position in construction said, “receiving that title was better than winning the lottery.” One individual said that his turning point was when he received a hug from one of the nurses where he was incarcerated. He referred to his experience, as “it was the first time anyone has ever showed that they cared and sometimes we just need some love.” The overall impact of calling that truce, and getting these individuals involved in the community, and in the workforce not only