The thing I forgot in the midst of that is this thing called "institutionalized racism" which I think one of the most powerful sources dividing the line between race and class. Defined as the process of purposely discriminating against certain groups of people through the use of biased laws or practices. Often, institutionalized racism is subtle and manifests itself in seemingly innocuous ways, but its effects are anything but subtle. An example of this type of racism is the redlining of districts to keep certain people from moving in to a new neighborhood, pervasive in the financial industry in the 1950s and 60s

I don't know if there is a word for it or if it is considered institutionalized racism, but it's the fact that many, if not all, do want out of poverty, and maybe no matter how hard they try, they are stuck being cab drivers, cashiers, cooks, attendants, etc, who simply cannot provide enough for their families or for their children to go to college. Hence, the children never goes to college and repeats the same cycle all over.

So, how do we propose a solution that will work?

And then here I am, so ungrateful. Way to make myself feel even crummier, huh? I just feel like, here I am, a college student who is getting an education and will eventually (and hopefully) attain a pretty good living and comfortable lifestyle (hopefully), and here I am growing troublesome about what my apartment may look like on the inside or outside, what it should smell like, carpeted or hardwood, ground window or not?

I propose that Thanksgiving Day come around about 4 times a year.
Days off school: YES!
Gratefulness: BOOSTED!

This website has a more socialistic view than my own, and the solutions proposed are a little bit on the unrealistic side. We can't just disperse wealth in all parts of the world equally nor is democracy attainable in all parts of the world, as we have learned in the past. Cultural practices run so deep that it's not possible to simply "abolish" gender inequality and expect people to abide by them. Violence is not the answer but we simply cannot ask for change by threatning to fast ourselves to death. Alright, so I am a little bit extreme here. I believe that change will come, slowly but surely. I also realize we can't change everything, and we can't help everyone. When I went through this website, I wondered if this is what most readers of this blog thinks of me; unrealistic, unlogical. Their proposed solution to poverty made me think of Team America, the whole basis of the story is that Kim Jong I of Korea wants to bomb every big city in the world so that every place on earth will be a 3rd world country. As the movie quotes:
Kim Jong I: It will be 911 times 2356.
Chris: My god, that's... I don't even know what that is!
Kim Jong I: Nobody does!
Not really a time to joke...but at least it shows you the severity of what he was trying to achieve. It's basically the solution that I think Howyoucanchangetheworld.com proposes minus the mass destruction. Just a little bit absurd.

First of all, how is this possible? Why is it so profitable? Because there is a market for it! Let me tell you, this makes me so sick that there are people out there like this and it makes me just as sick to know it is supported and profited in this country by who-knows-who. The United States government have taken steps to address it and try to help the situation with many protection acts, but it's not enough. I'm not blaming them, I don't know the the solution is either. The fact is, there are a lot of sick people out there and they hang real low. The numbers I provided are more or less, who knows! This activity is such an underground crime against human rights and is sadly really hard to detect.

Remember the sad fact that there is such a market here in the United States for this activity to thrive on. Don't support this market! This is one subject I am quite hopeless about, any ideas?

Blunkett charges miscarriage of justice victims ‘food and lodgings’
By Neil Mackay, Home Affairs Editor

WHAT do you give someone who’s been proved innocent after spending the best part of their life behind bars, wrongfully convicted of a crime they didn’t commit?
An apology, maybe? Counselling? Champagne? Compensation? Well, if you’re David Blunkett, the Labour Home Secretary, the choice is simple: you give them a big, fat bill for the cost of board and lodgings for the time they spent freeloading at Her Majesty’s Pleasure in British prisons.
On Tuesday, Blunkett will fight in the Royal Courts of Justice in London for the right to charge victims of miscarriages of justice more than £3000 for every year they spent in jail while wrongly convicted. The logic is that the innocent man shouldn’t have been in prison eating free porridge and sleeping for nothing under regulation grey blankets.
Blunkett’s fight has been described as “outrageous”, “morally repugnant” and the “sickest of sick jokes”, but his spokesmen in the Home Office say it’s a completely “reasonable course of action” as the innocent men and women would have spent the money anyway on food and lodgings if they weren’t in prison. The government deems the claw-back ‘Saved Living Expenses’.
Paddy Hill was one of the Birmingham Six. He spent 16 years behind bars for the 1974 Birmingham pub bombings by the IRA. Hill now lives on a farm with his wife and children near Beith in Scotland. He has been charged £50,000 for living expenses by the Home Office.
It wasn’t until two years ago that Hill was finally awarded £960,000 in compensation. However, during the years since his release, while waiting for the pay-out, the government had given him advances of around £300,000. When his compensation came through, the £300,000 was taken back along with interest on the interim payments charged at 23% – that cost him a further £70,000.
"The whole system is absurd,” Hill said. “I’m so angry about what has happened to me. I try and tell people about being charged for bed and board in jail and they can’t believe it.When I left prison I was given no training for freedom – no counselling or psychological preparation. Yet the guilty get that when they are released. To charge me for the food I ate and the cell I slept in is almost as big an injustice as fitting me up in the first place.While I was in prison, my family lost their home, yet they get no compensation. But the state wants its money back. It’s like being kicked in the head when someone has beat you already."

For full article, go here.

So I encourage you to sign this petition. I know only 29 have signed so far and it may in fact never make an impact. But many of us will have a try at a jury chair one day, take that into consideration. But don't cause fights, I've heard of those too :)

Although Americorps has the element of being close to home, it doesn't really appeal to me and I am not sure why. I think that there is something less exciting about being here. But it definitely sounds like a good alternative so I will keep digging into it.

America is so vast that some parts of the U.S is the complete opposite of another. There has to be a reason why churches have all of these "mission trips" that my best friend used to go to each summer. She would tell me stories about how poor they were and how different it was. I guess I will have to figure this out for myself!

I do understand where everyone is coming from through their responses because I feel the same way at times. And I do agree that personal safety is issue number one. As the title suggests, I took it upon myself to learn more about homelessness in the Twin Cities.

I found a good article here, talking about the myths of homeless people and what the situation is about it today. Many homeless people do work, there's a term for it, called "working poor." and rent requires about 30% of an individuals' income. The article also said that a report found in 2000 that 51% of homeless people were children or unaccompanied young adults, which is a large and disturbing number. Of course, there are centers for people who need the help, and I have yet to know that that much information about this subject. There is another article from pulsetc.com here. According the a survey done by the Wilder Foundation, there are about 8,000 homeless people in the Twin Cities. It's just hard to imagine for me that there are people out there in the winter since I can hardly stand the cold myself. Now I'm not saying "oh they are so poor you should give them all your money" or anything, I just think it's a good topic to know about. Jen mentioned that she volunteers at a food shelf and the other Jen volunteers at a homeless shelter on Thanksgiving with her family, which I think is wonderful.

I may as well tell you a story about a good friend who just loves "bums." Yup, he thinks they are the coolest thing ever, all the while not romanticizing the situation. A "bum" named JaJa (I might be wrong on the name here) asked him for a couple bucks (maybe) and my friend said, "how bout I buy you lunch instead." So they had lunch at McDonald's (what's up with Mcdonald's huh?) together and he just thought it was the coolest thing.

I thought that was pretty cool myself.

Hm.

I've been so worked up about problems globally that I've sorta forgotten about the problems we face here, everyday.

What do you guys do in a situation like that? I always say/think it depends. More than enough, I've been described as a person who would give change to a homeless person on the street. Well, its true, I would, most of the time. But if they look like an average person looking for a quick buck, I usually decline to give. If they look like an average person and justifies why he needs it, I usually will. Sometimes when I'm in the mood, I just will, no questions. If they physically look like they really need it, I will. But this is interesting: It makes a difference that I am downtown. I have to say, there is this white-bearded man who plays the accordian at times around campus... and I, with a guilty conscious, will just pass on by. Make note, I don't carry cash normally anyway. What are your feelings on this?

Common things people say are, "don't do that, they'll just use it on smokes/alchohol" or "you can't help everybody" and I can't think of others, but there are many misconceptions. Maybe they chose this as their lifestyle. Perhaps they did not have the choice. Whatever the case, I see a lot of able people not only pass by homeless people, but sneer at them as if better than they are.

Well, this is sort of a mixed post. But everyone should keep in mind that you and I, sitting here, reading this, are very fortunate to have what we have. And when you can give, give a little, they need it more than you do.