Chicago State University Women Children and Poverty Responses

Please watch the two film, Poor Kids 2012 and Poor Kids 2017. Write a reaction to what you watch. What are the differences that you see between 2012 and 2017. The links to the videos can be found below. You may have to copy and paste the link into a new browser. 

Each of you must create your own thread/post  

. Please respond to two other posts as well.

Please be respectful of each person’s post. If there are any disrespectful post, they will be deleted and points will be lost for this assignment.
 

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/poor-kids/…

Some questions that you can consider (you do NOT have to answer each question):

WHAT SURPRISED YOU ABOUT THESE FAMILIES’ EXPERIENCES?

CAN YOU NAME ANY OTHER EMOTIONS YOU EXPERIENCED WATCHING THIS DOCUMENTARY?

WHAT EFFECT DOES POVERTY HAVE ON WOMEN AND GIRLS? (THINK HEALTH, SAFETY, REPRODUCTIVE CONCERNS, ETC…)

WHAT DOES FOOD AND NUTRITION LOOK LIKE FOR PEOPLE IN POVERTY?

WHAT PROGRAMS ARE THE FAMILIES USING? DO YOU THINK THEY HELP OR HURT? WHY?

WHAT DOES HAVING A HOME MEAN IN THE UNITED STATES?

HOW WERE THE CHILDREN’S EDUCATION AFFECTED BY THEIR POVERTY? WHAT SHORT TERM AND LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES MIGHT THAT HAVE?

WHAT PART DO MENTAL HEALTH AND PHYSICAL HEALTH CONCERNS PLAY IN THESE FAMILIES’ EXPERIENCES?

Student 1

student 1

WHAT SURPRISED YOU ABOUT THESE FAMILIES’ EXPERIENCES?
I was surprised on how experienced that the children were in being poor, for example how resourceful they were to try and have money in their pockets. Also, some of them shared the stress of bills with their parents, most children are not even aware of bill till their late teens, and that is just knowing that there is bills that parents have to pay, but never how much bills are costing and how much the household income is. It surprised me the level of maturity these children have to have and fast to be able to share that stress with their parents. Their job isn’t to stress out about how much income there is, when bills are due or how much they are, because there is not enough money, their job is to enjoy their childhood; but that isn’t the case with these children. Even when a few years had passed by and the children were much older they were doing a little better as families, but still in poverty. I noticed that as kids they were still holding on to hope that things would be getting better and they were willing to accept that that is just what their life was at that moment, almost like I am grateful for what I do have. As older teenagers, most of them had given up that hope. They were thinking about their future but also in poverty. You can see the disappointment in their face with the fact that yes they were doing a little better but not how they had imagined and hope for when they were children. 

Student 2

While watching the movies, the only real difference that I noticed is that the kids had grown up, some of whom seem to be repeating the same cycle of lifestyles of their parents. One of the things that stood out and hit me emotionally was the burden that the kids have to bare from living in poverty. The kids, unfortunately, in my opinion, have way too much information about the parent’s financial status.  I know that this is a hard thing not to have to make sure they know because they need to be aware of the reasons why things are the way they are but to have to worry so much about adult things in so unfair to them they never have the chance to be kid.
In the show, they talk a lot about food and nutrition for people in poverty. Some of the main things that stand out to me about the way people have to eat while living in poverty are that the food that is bad for you is much cheaper than the food that would help to keep you healthy. The one good thing that was shown in the video is the food program the school has to make sure those kids don’t go hungry on the weekends. Even though this is an excellent program I feel the school should have a better way of getting the food to those kids instead of calling them down to the office as they did. Being a kid who is already ashamed of the life they live that was just another way to call them out in front of everyone.