When Do Human Needs become Human Rights?

M.Z (2015) Stories for the journey

Did you know that almost half the world lives on less than $2.50 a day? In fact, out of 2.2 billion children in this world, 640 million live without adequate shelter, 400 million live without access to safe drinkable water, and 270 million live without access to health service (Shah). I believe that living without poverty is not only a human need but a human right.

There are needs that allow us to live a happy life. According to Abraham Maslow, we couldn’t survive without food, water, sleep, and oxygen (Heffner). There is nothing in life that matters more than these three necessities. There is a second level called, “Safety Needs”. This consists of two needs. The first is safety and secondly is security. Shelter both allows for safety and security. In order for people to feel safe and have security, they need to have some type of area that is enclosed. People’security and safety are compromised because of their pay grade. It can deeply affect them if they cannot afford a durable place to live. From my experience, shelter gives a mindset that allows you to feel safe and secure.  Having to worry that you might not have somewhere warm to sleep that night is something very scary. Staying out of poverty can mean more than just having nothing to worry about. It is more about the mindset. It allows you to be more satisfied in life. We can change this if we really try.

We essentially cannot let people, who are no different from us, be exposed to this kind of treatment. If people were not in poverty, this would make the world a better place. Considering that poverty costs the US economy 500 billion dollars annually, relieving poverty can reduce this number and will help speed the economy which will provide higher paying jobs to more people (Brown). According to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP), children who live in poverty are deeply affected. It affects their ability to learn and can impose poor health, mental, and behavioral issues (National Center for Children in Poverty).  Providing employment for parents whose children are in poverty will allow them to have a better future. This will decrease our crime rates. It will also provide good mental and physical health.

We can attack poverty in several different ways. The first idea would be to increase employment. Increasing employment will be a lot of work for the government but will reduce the number of people who are in the line of poverty. Work that can be provided could range anywhere from a construction worker to a janitor. The benefit of these jobs is that they wouldn’t need much education or training. Having low-cost housing can reduce the number of people living in poverty (“9 Ways to Reduce Poverty”). A housing project can reduce the amount of money that is spent on housing and will allow people to spend their money on necessities.

Poverty can lead to deadly ways of living. No person whether adult or child should be allowed to live this way. The consequences can be positive if we learn to change. Shelter, water, food, security and safety come attached to the idea of reducing poverty. Reducing poverty can positively affect communities while not stopping it can negatively affect communities. These reasons leave me to believe that living without poverty should be a human right. Considering that it has a “domino effect”, it should be given the most attention.

Sources:

"9 Ways to Reduce Poverty." The Raising of America: Early Childhood and the Future of our Nation, www.raisingofamerica.org/9-ways-reduce-poverty.

Brown, Desmond. "10 Reasons Why Cutting Poverty Is Good for Our Nation." Center for American Progress Action, www.americanprogressaction.org/issues/poverty/news/2011/12/06/10771/10-reasons-why-cutting-poverty-is-good-for-our-nation/.

Heffner, Christopher L. "Chapter 10: Section 2: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs | AllPsych." AllPsych - Psychology Information for Students of All Ages, allpsych.com/personalitysynopsis/maslows/#.VdNG-zBViko.

 National Center for Children in Poverty. "NCCP | Child Poverty." NCCP | Home, www.nccp.org/topics/childpoverty.html.

Shah, Anup. "Poverty Facts and Stats — Global Issues." Global Issues : Social, Political, Economic and Environmental Issues That Affect Us All — Global Issues, 7 Jan. 2013, www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats#src3.

Source for Photo:

Zuniga, Marielena. "Stories for the journey." Photograph. Stories For The Journey, 2 Aug. 2015, mezuniga.wordpress.com/tag/poverty/.