Hello all!
Welcome to our blog Inequality, Poverty and Illness. In this blog we have a series of posts dedicated to discussing the intermingling of inequality, poverty and illness, with an emphasis on malnutrition, in urban areas of the United States of America. More specifically, we aim to answer this question:
First and foremost, our blog defines the word poverty, separating it into three sub facets: relative, absolute, and chronic poverty.
Relative poverty: Those categorized as poor in relation to the others around them, whom fall seriously behind normal nationwide standards (Dunn, 2017).
Absolute Poverty: Statistically, those making less than a dollar a day ($1/day) (Eitzen and Zinn, 81).
Chronic Poverty: Experienced poverty for 5 years or more (Mitlin, 2005).
The blog then delves into the concept of malnutrition, including other illnesses rooted in it, including over-nutrition (obesity) and undernutrition (wasting, stunting, underweight). The prevalence of these illnesses are heavily affected by the concept of food security, or the universal availability of "sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences of an active and healthy life" for all people at all times (World Food Summit 1996). Without food security, vulnerable populations can be gravely disadvantaged for making health a priority.
Additionally, we analyze our research question through the scope of three different inequality theories: Marx's Conflict Theory/Capitalism, Charles Tilly's Durable Inequality Theory, and Herbert Spencer's Social Darwinism Theory. Each theory explains the cause of inequality, and are further fleshed out in the blog posts. For now, a summation:
Marx's Conflict Theory/Capitalism looks at the power dichotomy between the bourgeoisie class and the proletariat class, arguing that the proletariat are exploited and in some cases can slip into poverty as a consequence.
Durable Inequality Theory asserts that inequality is the result of institutions that use categories to maintain control of valuable resources for the dominant group.
Herbert Spencer's Social Darwinism Theory views inequality as a natural consequence of a person's "evolutionary fitness" or lack thereof, thus blaming the individual for their own societal status, including if they are poverty stricken.
Our hope is that you walk away from this blog understanding the intricate relations between inequality, poverty and illness. While it has been explained by many before, inequality in society continues to prevail and further morph into more complicated versions of itself. Malnutrition and its related diseases will never resolve without the achievement of food security in all corners of the world, and with food security comes difficult political complications that go beyond the scope of this blog. In any case, we hope to give our audience, at the very least, perspective on how issues of inequality, poverty and illness have been viewed before, and potentially spur further conversation on how we can tackle these issues today.
Happy reading!
Contributors: Hannah Argumedo, Julia Arsan, Eboni Morgan, & Trevor Harding
How is malnutrition and poverty in urban America a manifestation of inequality?
First and foremost, our blog defines the word poverty, separating it into three sub facets: relative, absolute, and chronic poverty.
Relative poverty: Those categorized as poor in relation to the others around them, whom fall seriously behind normal nationwide standards (Dunn, 2017).
Absolute Poverty: Statistically, those making less than a dollar a day ($1/day) (Eitzen and Zinn, 81).
Chronic Poverty: Experienced poverty for 5 years or more (Mitlin, 2005).
The blog then delves into the concept of malnutrition, including other illnesses rooted in it, including over-nutrition (obesity) and undernutrition (wasting, stunting, underweight). The prevalence of these illnesses are heavily affected by the concept of food security, or the universal availability of "sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences of an active and healthy life" for all people at all times (World Food Summit 1996). Without food security, vulnerable populations can be gravely disadvantaged for making health a priority.
Additionally, we analyze our research question through the scope of three different inequality theories: Marx's Conflict Theory/Capitalism, Charles Tilly's Durable Inequality Theory, and Herbert Spencer's Social Darwinism Theory. Each theory explains the cause of inequality, and are further fleshed out in the blog posts. For now, a summation:
Marx's Conflict Theory/Capitalism looks at the power dichotomy between the bourgeoisie class and the proletariat class, arguing that the proletariat are exploited and in some cases can slip into poverty as a consequence.
Durable Inequality Theory asserts that inequality is the result of institutions that use categories to maintain control of valuable resources for the dominant group.
Herbert Spencer's Social Darwinism Theory views inequality as a natural consequence of a person's "evolutionary fitness" or lack thereof, thus blaming the individual for their own societal status, including if they are poverty stricken.
Our hope is that you walk away from this blog understanding the intricate relations between inequality, poverty and illness. While it has been explained by many before, inequality in society continues to prevail and further morph into more complicated versions of itself. Malnutrition and its related diseases will never resolve without the achievement of food security in all corners of the world, and with food security comes difficult political complications that go beyond the scope of this blog. In any case, we hope to give our audience, at the very least, perspective on how issues of inequality, poverty and illness have been viewed before, and potentially spur further conversation on how we can tackle these issues today.
Happy reading!
Contributors: Hannah Argumedo, Julia Arsan, Eboni Morgan, & Trevor Harding
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