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1. Housing crisis: daily life in tent cities and “cockroach apartments”
By 2023, more than 580,000 people will be homeless in the United States, and Los Angeles’ “tent city” has spread to the steps of City Hall. Single mother Martha and her two children live in a 15-square-foot basement with a monthly rent of $1,200. The walls are covered with mold, and cockroaches crawl out of the cracks. “The landlord said this is ‘affordable housing,’ but my salary is only enough to pay the rent and buy cheap cans.” For families like Martha, more than 11 million people in the U.S. struggle below the poverty line, accounting for 16.5% of the population (U.S. Census Bureau data).
2. Medical Dilemma: The Death Cycle of “Disease Means Bankruptcy”
Ron, a diabetic, had to reduce his daily dose due to a 300% increase in insulin prices in 10 years, and eventually had his legs amputated. Medical debt has destroyed the credit records of 100 million people in the United States, and ambulance bills cost an average of $1,200. Jack, an underclass worker, gritted his teeth and refused to seek medical treatment after breaking his bones: “I’d rather be disabled than have my whole family go hungry.” Federal data shows that 40% of Americans have given up treatment due to medical expenses, and the mortality rate for the lower class group is three times higher than for the rich.
3. Educational barriers: Transmission of poverty genes between generations
In rural Alabama, 35 percent of school books were published 20 years ago. Emily, a black girl, has a math teacher who has four different jobs. She uses plastic to cover leaks in the classroom ceiling. “Joint school education is higher than my mother’s annual salary.” This despair has caused the crime rate among lower-class youth to rise. Data shows that the likelihood of children from poor families getting into Ivy League schools is less than 4%, while the elite probability is as high as 72%.
4. Employment Dilemma: Invisible Slavery in the Concert Economy
Lisa, an Amazon warehouse worker, walked 22 kilometers a day and contracted a kidney infection from holding urine while rushing to work. Mark, a messenger, delivers food at minus 10 degrees Celsius, and his hourly wage is only $6 after the platform takes a 45% commission. The “gig economy” in the United States has swallowed up 57 million people, 68% of whom have no health insurance. The Federal Reserve report revealed that 40% of Americans cannot afford a $400 emergency and the purchasing power of the bottom hourly wage has decreased by 23% compared to 1978.
