Poverty
Working for Dignity
by Alí Bustamante, Ph.D. and Brendan Gottschall, S.J., JustSouth Quarterly Winter 2018
Catholic social thought (CST) gives us two fundamental principles with regards to wages: first, a just wage must provide “a dignified livelihood” for the worker and his/her family1; and, second, government is responsible for protecting the rights of workers.2 The just wage is thus a living wage and governments have an obligation to promote living wages through minimum wage laws and other labor protections.
Despite this moral imperative for employers and obligation on governments, wages in the Gulf South are among the lowest in the country. More than 1 in 5 workers in the region earn wages at or below $10 an hour (see Table 1). In 2016, the median/typical wage of $15 per hour in Mississippi was the lowest in the country. Even the highest median wage in the Gulf South of $16.47 per hour in Texas was well below the national median wage of $17.42 per hour.
Banner Photo: Over a six month period, Sakeenah Shabazz (Emerson Congressional Hunger Fellow at JSRI), Jeanie Donovan (JSRI Economic Policy Specialist), and Colleen Dulle (Loyola University New Orleans senior), traveled around Louisiana and spoke with 47 SNAP recipients and coordinators. SNAP Story Bank Project
OUR PERSPECTIVE:
An Introduction to Poverty and Measures of Poverty
By Fred Kammer, SJ
Poverty is one of the three focus areas for the work of JSRI. In their 1986 book-length pastoral letter Economic Justice for All the US Bishops reminded us of the importance of confronting poverty in these words: "Dealing with poverty is not a luxury to which our nation can attend when it finds the time and resources. Rather, it is a moral imperative of the highest priority."
But what does it mean to speak of poverty in the United States? Drawing on the tradition of Catholic Social Teaching, the bishops explained it this way, “By poverty, we are referring here to the lack of sufficient material resources required for a decent life.” Then, in the next sentence, they acknowledge the complexity of the question, “We use the government’s definition of poverty, although we recognize its limits.” And a footnote introduces elements of the national debate about what we call “the poverty line.” [Continue on to MORE about measuring poverty and poverty in the Gulf South.]
ARCHIVED ARTICLES ON POVERTY
Shredding the Health Safety Net --Kammer
Shrinking the Safety Net--Donovan
Hunger in Louisiana: The SNAP Story Bank Project --Shabazz
2017 Impact of ACA Repeal in Louisiana Fact Sheet
2016 School Readiness Tax Credit Fact Sheet
2016 Medicaid Expansion Fact Sheet
The Suffering South: Anti-Union and Poorer for it-- Kammer
Katrina and the Least Among Us: A ten year retrospective- Part 1 -- Kammer
Overtaxing the Poor and Blaming Oil in the Gulf South-- Bustamante
NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Homelessness, Housing Shortages, Funding Cuts, and Misplaced Priorities-- Kammer
Oil Prices or Tax Structures: What does the price of oil have to do with cuts to higher education and healthcare?-- Bustamante
Louisiana's $1 Billion Giveaway: giveaways cost the U.S. taxpayers $50 billion a year-- Kammer
Another Misleading Proposal: U.S. House Budget Committee Opportunity Proposal -- Kammer
Refusing To Expand Medicaid: Political Decisions with Deadly Consequences -- Kammer
The KIDS COUNT Gulf South: Children in the region continue not to count much! --Kammer
Raise the Minimum Wage! It's a Matter of Justice-- Kammer
The Affordable Care Act- Who, Why, and What?-- Kammer
The Relentless Assault on America's Hungry-- Kammer
Labor Day justice: What's the real cost of your cheap, fast food? --Kammer
Where are the Jobs? Continuing Unemployment and Worse-- Kammer
Taxing the Poor: The Regressive Nature of State-Local Tax Systems--Kammer
The Tax Deal... and More Coming Horrors--Kammer
Catholic Social Thought and Global Financial Systems--Kammer
21 Million Americans Kept Out of Poverty: Social Security critical to income of millions--Kammer
Catholic Social Thought and the Common Good--Kammer
Fairy-Tale or Worse? The Ryan-Romney Budget Plan and Catholic Moral Criteria--Kammer
Health Care Reform for Some: Governors play politics with health of low-income citizens -- Kammer
Does Relative Mobility "Cure" Inequality?--Kammer
Catholic Social Thought and Distributive Justice--Kammer
Growing Economic Inequality Matters!: Why People of Faith Should Be Concerned--Kammer
The Common Good and Election 2012: It’s not about my business, my taxes, or my family -- Kammer
The Payday Shark in Your Bank Account -- Mikulich
Catholicism and Capitalism -- Kammer
No Relief in Sight: Persistent High Unemployment for African Americans and Latinos in Gulf South States -- Mikulich