The Paula Gordon Show |
Poor in America | |||
America’s future depends on the future of the
working poor in America, according to Pulitzer Prize winning reporter
David Shipler. Millions of hardworking people are poor and suffering.
Who’s responsible? Everyone, he says. We all benefit from low wages
that make possible unnecessarily low prices for services, goods and food. |
Conversation 1 David Shipler describes
his role as a reporter (for which he won a Pulitzer Prize) to Paula
Gordon and Bill Russell. He gives examples
of just how invisible America’s working poor are. 5:40
secs
|
Conversation 2 On a quest to understand
his country, Mr. Shipler contrasts the American myth (“the land
of opportunity”) to the American anti-myth (“if you don’t
prosper, it’s society’s fault”) and finds both falling
short. Solutions begin with defining problems, he says, convinced
that America’s future will be directly affected by how it treats
its working poor. He expands, considering both long-time citizens
and challenges for new immigrants. He faults “talk shout”
hosts for discarding nuance and truth, then suggests ways politicians
must stake out the common ground necessary for solving problems. 11:39
secs
|
Conversation 3 With a series of stories of real working people’s real poverty, Mr. Shipler examines the interlocking problems created by repeated failures. He describes “soft skills” both workers and employers need to learn. When a poor family without resources suffers a reverse or a trauma, it has a cascading effect that is very hard to stop, he says, pointing by way of example to the multiple consequences of the epidemic of childhood sexual abuse. 10:15
secs
|
Conversation 4 The interaction of housing and health offers a perspective on how individual problems exacerbate each other among the working poor, says Mr. Shipler. Poverty is not a problem -- it is a cluster of problems which all interact with one another, he reports. He tells how the Boston Medical Center employs lawyers to address a host of problems linked to illnesses. The health care system in the U.S. is broken, he observes, and needs to be fixed before it leads to a serious catastrophe. 10:46
secs
|
Conversation 5 Confident in Americans’ inventiveness, Mr. Shipler suggests capitalizing on existing innovative programs, projects and knowledge. He highlights the importance of early intervention programs. America has the wealth, heart and capacity to focus its energies and mobilize its resources to make a difference for hardworking people at the margins of society, he believes. Since problems are inter-related, services should be, too, Mr. Shipler insists, with stories of how this approach is already working. He describes bureaucrats who deny working poor people the services to which they are entitled as the true welfare cheats. “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness” applies to all and -- along with justice -- are the business of government, he says. 10:18
secs
|
Conversation 6 Every single American is accountable for the plight of the working poor in the U.S., because everyone benefits from the low prices of goods and services that depend on low wages, Mr. Shipler concludes. He illustrates with the plight of illegal immigrants who are essential to their employers, then reminds us that if we invest in children now, we will invest less in prisons later. 6:33
secs
|
Acknowledgements David Shipler’s urge to know his own country has served us all well. We thank him for his continuing efforts to help America be the best it can be -- and having the courage to tell us about it when the United States fall short. |
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