tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/poor-40333/articlesPoor – The Conversation2023-08-21T12:25:33Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2104472023-08-21T12:25:33Z2023-08-21T12:25:33ZWhat the pope’s visit to Mongolia says about his priorities and how he is changing the Catholic Church<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542824/original/file-20230815-23-w5anbw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C0%2C5343%2C3583&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Pope Francis' upcoming visit to meet the tiny Catholic community of Mongolia is drawing considerable interest.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/pope-francis-gestures-during-the-weekly-general-audience-on-news-photo/1586313499?adppopup=true"> Filippo Monteforte/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Pope Francis’ upcoming visit to Mongolia, which is home to fewer than 1,500 Catholics, has <a href="https://cruxnow.com/church-in-asia/2023/07/missionaries-say-shock-of-papal-visit-to-mongolia-a-chance-to-introduce-the-faith">elicited curiosity</a> among Catholics and non-Catholics alike. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/1/31/map-which-countries-has-pope-francis-visited">This will be the pope’s 43rd</a> trip abroad since his election on March 13, 2013: He has visited 12 countries in the Americas, 11 in Asia and 10 in Africa. </p>
<p>What do these visits tell us about this pope’s mission and focus? </p>
<p>As a scholar of Roman Catholicism, I <a href="https://clas.uiowa.edu/religion/people/kristy-nabhan-warren">have studied Catholicism’s appeal</a> for immigrants and refugees, and I argue that the pontiff’s official travels since 2013 are part of his decadelong effort to rebrand the Roman Catholic Church as a religious institution that centers the poor.</p>
<h2>Prioritizing the poor</h2>
<p>While previous popes have included the poor in their speeches, what has distinguished this pope is that he has focused on the Global South and prioritized immigrants, refugees and the less privileged, from Bolivia to Myanmar to Mongolia.</p>
<p>At his July 2013 visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa to commemorate migrants who had drowned in the Mediterranean Sea, <a href="https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/vatican-news/10-years-later-pope-francis-lampedusa-cry-offers-renewed-call-welcome-migrants#:%7E:text=When%20Pope%20Francis%20visited%20Lampedusa,become%20synonymous%20with%20his%20papacy">Francis gave a blistering critique</a> of the world’s failure to care for the poor: “In this globalized world, we have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/08/pope-globalisation-of-indifference-lampedusa">fallen into globalized indifference</a>. We have become used to the suffering of others: it doesn’t affect me; it doesn’t concern me; it’s none of my business!” </p>
<p>Three years later, the pope flew 12 Syrian Muslim refugees from a Greek refugee camp to Rome. Francis is the first pope to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/12/05/world/pope-francis-greece-migrants#">relocate refugees and to work with groups</a> like The Community of St. Egidio charity in Rome that have successfully resettled thousands of refugees. </p>
<p>During my own interviews with Central American Catholic immigrants and refugees in central and eastern Iowa between 2013-2020 for my book, “<a href="https://uncpress.org/book/9781469663494/meatpacking-america/">Meatpacking America</a>,” I heard from women and men who fled violence and poverty in their home nations that they look up to this pope “because he cares about us,” as Fernando said. And Josefina told me back in 2017 that this pope is “the real deal” in terms of supporting immigrants and the poor. </p>
<h2>Francis and liberation theology</h2>
<p>His predecessors – Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict – specifically <a href="https://www.deseret.com/2007/5/8/20017359/benedict-to-confront-liberation-theology">condemned liberation theology</a>, a philosophy <a href="https://theconversation.com/after-50-years-liberation-theology-is-still-reshaping-catholicism-and-politics-but-what-is-it-186804">rooted in Catholic social teachings</a> that calls for a preferential option for the poor and an embrace of Marxist ideology. </p>
<p>According to Austen Ivereigh prior to his becoming pope, Francis — <a href="https://sojo.net/articles/pope-francis-liberation-theologian">then Jorge Mario Bergoglio – condemned liberation theology as well</a>. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/11/vatican-new-chapter-liberation-theology-founder-gustavo-gutierrez">He would say</a> “that they were for the people but never with them,” wrote Ivereigh, in his biography of Pope Francis.</p>
<p>Since his election as pope, however, Francis has undertaken what I call “people-focused” liberationism. In one of his first official announcements in 2013, “Evangelii Gaudium,” or “The Joy of the Gospel,” the pope <a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20131124_evangelii-gaudium.html">wrote about the essential inclusion</a> of the poor in society, arguing that “without the preferential option for the poor, the proclamation of the Gospel, which is itself the prime form of charity, risks being misunderstood or submerged by the ocean of words which daily engulfs us in today’s society of mass communications.” </p>
<p>In other words, the Gospel’s message that all Christians proclaim doesn’t mean a whole lot if the poor are not central to the goal of personal as well as collective salvation.</p>
<h2>Journeying to Mongolia</h2>
<p>How does the pope’s upcoming visit to Mongolia factor into this decade-spanning trajectory of his people-focused liberation?</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A Catholic nun handing out food to children seated on a rug in two rows." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542822/original/file-20230815-27-42kbnn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Food service for homeless children in a shantytown in Mongolia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/food-service-for-homeless-children-organised-by-fraternite-news-photo/524114802?adppopup=true">Michel Setboun/Corbis via Getty Images</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Christianity has been present in Mongolia since the seventh century. <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/40463470">Nestorianism, an Eastern branch of Christianity</a> named after the Patriarch of Constantinople Nestorius, who lived from 386 C.E. to 451 C.E., coexisted alongside an even older religious practice, shamanism, which emphasized the natural world and dates to the third century. Nestorians believe that Christ had two natures – one human and one divine. </p>
<p>While Mary was seen as important within Nestorian theology as Christ’s mother, she is not seen as divine. This is similar to Roman Catholic theology where Mary is deemed special because she is Christ’s mother and worthy of veneration.</p>
<p>According to historian <a href="https://www.giffordlectures.org/lecturers/robert-merrihew-adams">Robert Merrihew Adams</a>, the missionary activity of Nestorian Christians in central Asia from the seventh to the 13th centuries was “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/monist/onab005">the most impressive Christian enterprise</a>” of the Middle Ages because of its rapid spread and influence. </p>
<p>Adams argues that Nestorianism’s spread was in part because of its belief that Christ was a two-natured individual – one divine and one human. These two natures in one body meshed well with preexisting shamanic beliefs, as shamanism sees individuals as able to harness the supernatural. </p>
<p>In addition to this branch of Eastern Christianity, Tibetan Buddhism came to Mongolia in the 13th century, as did Islam. Today, <a href="https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-religions-are-practiced-in-mongolia.html">Buddhism is the dominant religion of Mongolia</a>, while Islam and Christianity remain very small percentages at 3% and 2.5%. </p>
<p>Pope Francis has made it clear throughout his tenure that interfaith dialogue is an essential remedy to division. During his visit he will <a href="https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2023/07/18/pope-visits-mongolia-community-245698">preside over an interfaith gathering</a> and the opening of a Catholic charity house. </p>
<h2>A strategic visit</h2>
<p>The past decade has brought rapid urbanization and growth in major cities such as the capital of Ulaanbaatar, along with <a href="https://asiafoundation.org/2014/06/25/poverty-inequality-and-the-negative-effects-of-mongolias-economic-downturn/">high rates of unemployment and Covid-era</a> economic downturn. </p>
<p>And yet, according to the World Bank, the <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/mongolia/overview">economic forecast</a> for Mongolia remains “promising” because of its rich natural resources, such as gold, copper, coal and other minerals. </p>
<p>However, extraction of Mongolia’s resources is <a href="https://hir.harvard.edu/mongolia-on-the-verge-of-a-mineral-miracle/">occurring at a rapid pace</a> – so much so that the country, according to the Harvard International Review, has been called “Minegolia.” The United States has <a href="https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/china-mongolia-taiwan/mongolia#:%7E:text=Mongolia%27s%20economy%2C%20traditionally%20based%20on,uranium%2C%20tin%2C%20and%20tungsten">made significant investment</a> in Mongolia’s mining industry, and China is a major importer of Mongolian coal. Two rail lines connecting Mongolia to China were installed in January 2022 and a third is being built. </p>
<p>In the past, Francis has made strong comments against corruption and environmental degradation, and it would not be surprising if he addressed the challenges of the mining industry during his trip. During his trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2023, <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/world/pope-francis-visit-congo/">he critiqued the Global North</a> that contributed to “the poison of greed” that has “smeared its diamonds with blood.” In 2018, the pope spent a few hours in Madre de Dios, an area in the Peruvian Amazon, where <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/bio/susan-egan-keane/popes-visit-highlights-gold-mining-problems-and-solutions">mining has led to</a> large-scale environmental degradation.</p>
<p>The pope’s visit will be bold given the challenges before Mongolia and its geographic location between Russia and China. A peace delegation on behalf of Pope Francis for the war in Ukraine, led by Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, that visted Russia this summer is <a href="https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2023/07/china-could-be-next-stop-for-popes-ukraine-peace-envoy">likely to head to China in the coming months</a>. </p>
<p>As Italian Cardinal Giorgio Marengo, a missionary in Mongolia for two decades, has emphasized, Pope Francis’s visit to this country with a tiny minority of Catholics will “<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vatican-pope-mongolia-cardinal-china-6812de8a1cd238b88d6226cd20c8f042">manifest the attention</a> that the (pope) has for every individual, every person who embarks in this journey of faith.”</p>
<p><em>This piece has been updated to correct the depiction of the Roman Catholic Church’s view on Mary’s divinity.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210447/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kristy Nabhan-Warren does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A scholar of Roman Catholicism explains why Pope Francis’ visit to Mongolia, home to fewer than 1,500 Catholics, is significant.Kristy Nabhan-Warren, Associate Vice President of Research, University of IowaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1749222022-06-28T11:57:04Z2022-06-28T11:57:04ZAnti-abortion pregnancy centers will likely outlast the age of Roe – here’s how they’re funded and the services they provide<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470680/original/file-20220623-51933-jlif1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5982%2C3574&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A dozen states now provide a total of $89 million in funding to pregnancy centers.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/studio-portrait-of-pregnant-woman-royalty-free-image/1207238436?adppopup=true">Yuji Ozeki/Digital Vision via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Experts predict <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/what-can-economic-research-tell-us-about-the-effect-of-abortion-access-on-womens-lives/">increased economic hardship</a> now that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/1971/70-18">Roe v. Wade</a> in its <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2021/19-1392">Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization</a> decision.</p>
<p>Three-quarters of abortion patients in the United States <a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/report/characteristics-us-abortion-patients-2014">have incomes that place them below or just barely above the federal poverty line</a> of <a href="https://aspe.hhs.gov/topics/poverty-economic-mobility/poverty-guidelines/prior-hhs-poverty-guidelines-federal-register-references/2021-poverty-guidelines#threshholds">US$26,500 for a family of four</a> in 2021. The inability to afford a child ranks among the most common reasons women give when they explain <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6874-13-29">why they are ending a pregnancy</a>.</p>
<p>The anti-abortion movement is often <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/12/dobbs-roe-abortion-poverty-statistics-republicans.html">criticized as caring little</a> about these matters. But as <a href="https://politicalscience.umbc.edu/faculty-1/dr-laura-hussey/">a political scientist</a> who has studied the intersections of abortion and social welfare issues, I became intrigued by a large but little-known subset of anti-abortion activists who claimed to support women during pregnancy and after childbirth. </p>
<p><a href="https://kansaspress.ku.edu/978-0-7006-2900-8.html">My 2020 book on this “pregnancy help” work</a> indicates that the anti-abortion movement does provide support to low-income families, even if not in the way its critics might prefer. </p>
<h2>The ‘pregnancy help’ movement</h2>
<p>This work mostly occurs within the anti-abortion movement’s own charitable organizations. Participants in this “pregnancy help movement,” <a href="https://www.heartbeatinternational.org/footsoldiers">according to Margaret Hartshorn</a>, the former president of one such organization, strive to make abortion “unwanted now and unthinkable in future generations” by ensuring “that no woman ever feels forced to have an abortion because of lack of support or practical alternatives.” </p>
<p>People in the movement run maternity homes, adoption and social service agencies, charitable medical practices, hotlines, support groups and aid networks. However, the core institutions of their movement are pregnancy centers. <a href="https://mobilizingideas.wordpress.com/2013/03/04/co-opting-choice-one-woman-at-a-time/">Pregnancy centers</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1086/665807">typically offer</a> free pregnancy tests, sonograms, counseling and promises of material support in the hopes of persuading women to carry unintended pregnancies to term. </p>
<p>The first ones began to open in the U.S. in the late 1960s. They outnumbered <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/05/health/pregnancy-centers-gain-influence-in-anti-abortion-fight.html">abortion providers</a> at least as early as 2013. A July 2018 directory listed 2,740 U.S. pregnancy centers. Lehigh University <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/M/bo5186375.html">sociologist Ziad Munson writes</a> that such outreach involves more people, volunteer hours and organizations than any other type of anti-abortion activism.</p>
<p>Based on my interviews of pregnancy center leaders and review of various movement communications, these organizations are mostly funded by individual donations, commonly raised through banquets, walks, races or church-based collections of money and goods. Some anti-abortion groups like <a href="https://www.focusonthefamily.com/pro-life/option-ultrasound-program-2/">Focus on the Family</a> and the <a href="https://www.kofc.org/en/what-we-do/faith-in-action-programs/life/pregnancy-center-support.html">Knights of Columbus</a> give them grants.</p>
<p>Pregnancy centers typically aren’t affiliated with specific churches, though they often frame themselves as ministries modeled on Jesus Christ’s love for people who are hurting and marginalized.</p>
<p>In 13 states as of 2021, pregnancy centers could apply for funding from state-run <a href="https://equityfwd.org/research/mapping-deception-closer-look-how-states-anti-abortion-center-programs-operate">Alternatives to Abortion programs</a>. As of March 2022, as many as 19 states may have directed a proportion of <a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/choose-life-license-plates">“Choose Life” license plate proceeds</a> to pregnancy centers. An Associated Press investigation of fiscal 2022 state budgets found that <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/millions-tax-dollars-flow-anti-abortion-centers-us-82692429">12 states funded pregnancy centers</a>, providing US$89 million. </p>
<p>Centers can also apply for select federal grants. According to a <a href="https://s27589.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Pregnancy-Center-Report-2020_FINAL.pdf">report on U.S. pregnancy center services</a> by the Charlotte Lozier Institute, an anti-abortion think tank, 17% of U.S. centers received some public money in 2019. </p>
<p>By comparison, the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, which provides abortions and other reproductive health care services, <a href="https://www.plannedparenthood.org/uploads/filer_public/67/30/67305ea1-8da2-4cee-9191-19228c1d6f70/210219-annual-report-2019-2020-web-final.pdf">reported receiving</a> about $618 million – or 38% of its revenue – in government grants and payments for services in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020.</p>
<p>U.S. pregnancy centers in 2019, also according to the Lozier Institute, performed more than 730,000 pregnancy tests and met with nearly 1 million new clients. </p>
<p>For perspective, the U.S. recorded <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr-8-508.pdf">3.75 million live births</a> that year. In 2017, the most recent data available, <a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/report/abortion-incidence-service-availability-us-2017">just over 860,000 abortions</a> were performed. A new <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0255152">peer-reviewed study</a> of pregnant women who were searching online for an abortion provider – suggesting they may be more internet-savvy, older and more socioeconomically advantaged than U.S. abortion-seekers generally – found that at least 13% of them visited a pregnancy center.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An infant sleeps inside a crib." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470966/original/file-20220626-22-iwnvup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Many pregnancy help centers provide low-income clients with cribs, baby clothes and diapers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/cute-baby-sleeps-at-night-in-a-cradle-for-babies-royalty-free-image/1314727351?adppopup=true">Tatiana Kutina/EyeEm via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>Pregnancy center aid</h2>
<p>Anti-abortion advocates paint pregnancy centers as <a href="https://clmagazine.org/topic/pro-life-champions/pro-life-pregnancy-centers-caring-for-mothers-and-their-preborn-babies/">the compassionate alternative to abortion</a>. Abortion-rights activists describe them as <a href="https://alliancestateadvocates.org/crisis-pregnancy-centers/">threats to public health</a> that advertise deceptively, offer few health care services and infuse their counseling with <a href="https://www.prochoiceamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/cpc-report-2015.pdf">misinformation and emotional coercion</a>. </p>
<p>My research did not attempt to assess the quality of counseling provided by the centers. Rather, I focused on broadly understanding and describing the movement and measuring the extent of help they provide to needy families.</p>
<p>Similar to data I collected in 2012, a 2019 report by the Lozier Institute claimed that <a href="https://s27589.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Pregnancy-Center-Report-2020_FINAL.pdf">94% of centers provided material aid</a>. The report credited U.S. pregnancy centers with distributing about 1.3 million packages of diapers, 690,000 packages of wipes, 2 million baby outfits, 30,000 new car seats and 20,000 strollers. They valued these goods at nearly $27 million. I also found pregnancy centers provided personalized help in navigating community resources for housing, health care, creditor mediation and domestic violence recovery. </p>
<p>Activists told me that helping families meet their material needs was integral to their missions, greatly needed, and simply “Christian” or “pro-life.” <a href="http://www.ekyros.com/Pub/DesktopModules/ekyros/ViewStats.aspx?ItemId=13&mid=89&tabid=16">Available data suggests</a> that the women who use these centers tend to be under 30 and unmarried.</p>
<p>My research also noted that pregnancy centers were increasingly tying material aid to participation in their <a href="https://www.ewyl.com/curriculum.aspx?PackItemNumber=7601EWYL-EC&date=8/16/2021">parenting programs</a>. </p>
<p>Another trending service they offer is ultrasound imaging. Leaders I interviewed felt that offering a medical service could increase centers’ credibility and that viewing an image of their fetus would inspire clients to “choose life.” <a href="https://nifla.org/training/institute-limited-obstetric-ultrasound/">Trained nurses</a> overseen by an often off-site <a href="https://www.atcmag.com/Issues/ID/159/Staffing-the-Pregnancy-Medical-Clinic">physician “medical director”</a> usually perform the scans, but otherwise, <a href="https://sph.unc.edu/sph-news/crisis-pregnancy-centers-come-up-short-in-providing-access-to-information-on-pregnancy-options/">critics</a> correctly assert that most pregnancy center staff lack medical training.</p>
<p>Interviews of 21 pregnancy center clients over a period between 2015 and 2017 led medical sociologist Katrina Kimport of the University of California, San Francisco to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1363/psrh.12131">conclude</a> that “low-income women can find these centers to be meaningful and appreciated sources of free emotional support, pregnancy-related services and material goods,” even if the women ultimately needed more economic resources than centers could provide and sometimes struggled with program requirements. </p>
<p>Kimport continued: “Although these centers have been rightly criticized for disseminating scientifically inaccurate materials and employing potentially deceptive practices, the policy debate about their legitimacy needs to be more nuanced.” </p>
<h2>Pregnancy help in a post-Roe America</h2>
<p>Pregnancy center volunteers and employees I surveyed in 2012 overwhelmingly agreed that pregnancy centers would remain needed if the federal right to abortion was overturned. Centers are already most numerous, my statistical analysis of location data found, where public opposition to abortion is highest, abortion rates are lowest and abortion providers are the most scarce. Some anti-abortion leaders are calling the movement to follow the fall of Roe <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/05/upshot/abortion-without-roe-wade.html">with increased aid to low-income people</a>, some of which would flow through pregnancy centers. </p>
<p>The kind of aid pregnancy help groups offer won’t begin to cover all costs of childbearing, or solve larger socioeconomic problems. Many women inclined toward abortion likely don’t see anti-abortion pregnancy centers as desirable service providers. </p>
<p>Still, they attract anti-abortion activists who appear to take seriously what one interviewee called the “consequences to a choice for life.” In my view, they could potentially participate constructively in a conversation about poverty and childbearing in a post-Roe America.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/174922/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>I am a member of Feminists for Life, an anti-abortion education and advocacy group that describes its mission as "systematically eliminating the root causes that drive women to abortion."</span></em></p>Offering free pregnancy tests, sonograms and counseling, the pregnancy help movement maintains more than 2,700 resource centers throughout the United States.Laura Antkowiak, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1708772021-11-08T06:34:26Z2021-11-08T06:34:26ZWhy happiness is becoming more expensive and out of reach for many Australians<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/430693/original/file-20211108-10171-1sm1wxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5010%2C3710&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>One of the most well-known findings in the economic study of happiness is that, on average, happiness increases with income, but <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2016/jan/07/can-money-buy-happiness">at a certain point diminishing returns set in</a>.</p>
<p>In other words, money can only buy a fixed level of happiness, after which extra income and wealth doesn’t make much difference. Presumably after this point, happiness depends on other things, such as <a href="https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/behaviouralscience/2016/01/04/does-money-buy-happiness-it-depends-on-the-context/">health, leisure time, quality of friendships and close family</a>.</p>
<p>Our new study, published in October, found the income level required to be happy in Australia <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S235282732100224X">has been increasing and moving out of reach of most Australians</a>.</p>
<p>The happiness of increasing numbers of Australians has become more dependent on income than ever this millennium.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/can-money-buy-happiness-29570">Can money buy happiness?</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Happiness increases with income, to a point</h2>
<p>Nobel prize winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman first described the change point where extra income begins to matter less for happiness. He found this change point <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/107/38/16489.short">in the United States was US$75,000</a> in 2008.</p>
<p>This was substantially more than the US median income of $52,000 in the same year.</p>
<p>The difference revealed an unacknowledged inequity in the distribution of well-being in the US economy. The happiness of the poorest majority of the US population (<a href="https://dqydj.com/household-income-by-year/">68%</a>) was tied to marginal changes in income, while that of a richer minority (32%) wasn’t.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-paradox-of-happiness-the-more-you-chase-it-the-more-elusive-it-becomes-112217">The paradox of happiness: the more you chase it the more elusive it becomes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>But what about fairer, more egalitarian countries with a strong middle-class, like Australia? Since the start of the millennium, Australia has enjoyed a <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/research/completed/rising-inequality">growing household real income and stable levels of income inequality</a>, better than the US and on <a href="https://data.oecd.org/inequality/income-inequality.htm">par with the OECD average</a>.</p>
<p>And the average level of <a href="https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/life-satisfaction/">life-satisfaction</a> in Australia has been reliably higher than the OECD average, as well as the US.</p>
<p>In terms of real income, income inequality and overall life satisfaction, Australia has a stable and solid record.</p>
<p>However, life satisfaction isn’t the same as happiness.</p>
<h2>What did we study?</h2>
<p>We used data from the influential Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) <a href="https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/hilda">survey</a>, provided by the Melbourne Institute.</p>
<p>This data show Australia’s average happiness has been declining since 2009.</p>
<p>The annual HILDA survey asks Australians to recall how often they felt happy, joyful, sad, tired or depressed in the last month, in each year since 2001.</p>
<p>The frequency of these feelings is quite different from a single rating of how satisfied you are with your life.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S235282732100224X">our study</a>, we combined each person’s frequencies into a single <em>happiness score</em> to see how it changed between 2001 and 2019 in relation to household income.</p>
<p>When people were asked to consider how often they experienced different emotions in the past month, rather than how satisfied they are with their life in general, the average happiness score peaked in 2009 and has declined every year since 2012.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429661/original/file-20211101-19-1akyflf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Household income and life satisfaction have been stable in Australia since 2009, while happiness has been decreasing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">HILDA survey</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What did we find?</h2>
<p>The change point at which the happiness of most Australians no longer strongly depends on income has almost doubled from A$43,000 to A$74,000.</p>
<p>At the same time, the median income has lingered at less than A$50,000 per year since 2009. </p>
<p>The number of Australians on an income below this change point has increased from around 60% to 74%.</p>
<p>These changes have taken place after adjusting for inflation and cost-of-living increases. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430696/original/file-20211108-10121-109l8gj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Average happiness has declined as the population below the income change point has increased.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">HILDA survey</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So what does this trend over time mean?</h2>
<p>Our work shows someone living in the average Australian household earning A$50,000 in 2001 and the equivalent amount in 2019 (adjusted for inflation) has become much less happy over the past two decades.</p>
<p>On the other hand, the happiness of people living in a wealthier household (for example, $80,000 per household) has been largely preserved.</p>
<p>Over the first two decades of this millennium, more and more Australians’ happiness has become dependent on their income, despite high life satisfaction ratings and stable income inequality across households.</p>
<p>These measures of economic well-being and equity, typically published by economic wonks and government policy-makers, aren’t revealing potentially important changes in the underlying marginal return on income across the Australian economy.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/so-many-in-the-west-are-depressed-because-theyre-expected-not-to-be-79672">So many in the West are depressed because they're expected not to be</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Income by itself doesn’t explain a large proportion of the variance in happiness, only around 5% (ranging between 1.6% to 14.8% in our study). But it’s still concerning because across the entire population these small changes can be expected to accumulate.</p>
<p>Australians’ happiness is becoming more sensitive to income as the change point has increased. At the same time, incomes are stagnating and happiness levels are declining, which is likely to drive further inequities in well-being between the rich and poor in Australia.</p>
<p>As Australia heads into a post-COVID world and deals with the economic after-effects of the pandemic, our government and its advisers need to pay attention to more than GDP and growth, and ask whether the distribution of well-being and happiness is improving for everyone.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170877/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nick Glozier receives funding from the Australian Research Council's Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course (Project ID CE200100025).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Morris does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The change point at which the happiness of most Australians no longer strongly depends on income has almost doubled from A$43,000 to A$74,000.Richard Morris, Research scientist, University of SydneyNick Glozier, Professor of Psychological Medicine, BMRI & Disciplne of Psychiatry, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1673342021-10-04T13:07:53Z2021-10-04T13:07:53ZWhy some college sports are often out of reach for students from low-income families<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424095/original/file-20210930-20-1op4ye8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C0%2C3784%2C2550&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">High school athletes from wealthy backgrounds are more likely to play sports in college.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/tyler-sandoval-of-the-princeton-tigers-runs-with-the-ball-news-photo/1211542836?adppopup=true">Rich Barnes/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When it comes to landing a spot on a college sports team, a student’s chances are profoundly affected by their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">parents’ wealth and education</a>. Even college sports recruitment <a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">favors white suburban athletes</a>.</p>
<p>Those two findings come from our collective research as <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=NzwC_FQAAAAJ">sport sociology</a> and <a href="https://www.ou.edu/education/people/kirsten-hextrum">education</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=list_works&hl=en&user=MpDYnYwAAAAJ">scholars</a>. As former college athletes, we have lived and studied what it takes to become a college athlete. We found that becoming a college athlete takes opportunity, investment, commitment and suitable social interactions. </p>
<p>Our research supports what many college athletes that we spoke with, such as Malcolm – a Black man who grew up in a white suburb and is a second-generation college athlete – already know. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">Malcolm observed</a> that the chances of becoming a college athlete depend on where you grow up, how much money your parents have, <a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781442266285/How-College-Athletics-Are-Hurting-Girls-Sports-The-Pay-to-Play-Pipeline">what your parents know about the college and sports pipelines</a>, and who can help give you a leg up.</p>
<p>“People think Usain Bolt is the fastest man in the world because he has the fastest-man-in-the-world genes. I honestly don’t think so,” Malcolm <a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">explained</a>. “I think there’s somebody on the block somewhere that can probably run faster than Usain Bolt if they got the same coaching and the same technique. … I don’t think the world sees that. … [Bolt] put his time in. … You have to put your time in regardless of what sport it is.”</p>
<p>Malcolm is just one of <a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">47 college athletes</a> interviewed as part of our work. We also tracked what happened to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">7,810 10th grade students</a> over their next four years.</p>
<p>We found that parents’ wealth and education, family investments and know-how all <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">affect the likelihood of playing college sports</a>. And we found <a href="https://news.osu.edu/want-to-play-college-sports-a-wealthy-family-helps/">sharp divisions between rich and poor</a>. Among the most well-off students, 23% of high school seniors that were varsity athletes went on to play college sports. But among the economically poorest families, only 9% went on to play college sports.</p>
<h2>Community effects</h2>
<p>C.M., a white woman and long-distance runner who played six different sports before becoming a college athlete, was among the students interviewed from more affluent families. Her hometown was “<a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">as suburbia as you can get</a>.” It included “<a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">27 pools, two lagoons and two manmade lakes</a>”; a recreation center with tennis courts and softball and soccer fields; equestrian facilities; and running trails.</p>
<p>Greater access to athletic facilities, parks and recreation centers <a href="https://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/articles_and_report/go-out-and-play/">increases sports participation</a>. Majority-nonwhite and lower-income communities have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2007.09.021">fewer recreational centers and sports offerings</a> than white, affluent neighborhoods that apply their greater <a href="https://nwlc.org/resources/finishing-last-girls-color-and-school-sports-opportunities/">tax dollars and private funding</a> to offer them. So it’s no surprise that children from wealthier communities play sports <a href="https://assets.aspeninstitute.org/content/uploads/2019/10/2019_SOP_National_Final.pdf">more frequently</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A young white man attempts to hit a tennis ball with a racket." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=519&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=519&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424283/original/file-20211001-17-1qlv310.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=519&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A community’s wealth helps determine students’ access to various sports.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/high-school-boys-tennis-match-between-dana-hills-and-news-photo/563617895?adppopup=true">Vince Compagnone/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Accordingly, our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">study of 10th graders</a> found that going to a wealthier school, having more school-sponsored sports offered and playing multiple sports led to higher chances of becoming a college athlete. Compared to attending a school with hardly any students who were poor enough to qualify for free or reduced lunch, attending a school where 75% or more of the student body was on free or reduced lunch was associated with cutting a student’s odds of becoming a college athlete nearly in half.</p>
<p>C.M.’s public school also placed a big emphasis on going to college. Wealthier communities <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/04/29/upshot/money-race-and-success-how-your-school-district-compares.html">pool larger family and community resources</a> to <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo18009024.html">more heavily invest in education</a> than poorer communities. They also <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo18009024.html">reinforce messages about the importance of going to college</a>, which in turn leads to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797619855385">higher rates of actually going to college</a> than in poorer communities.</p>
<p>Consequently, we found <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">schools’ proportions of low-income students and both students’ own college-going expectations and the extent to which others expected them to go to college</a> were associated with students’ likelihood of becoming a college athlete.</p>
<h2>Family investments</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">Duane</a>, a Black man and middle-distance runner, learned that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">family investments also matter</a>.</p>
<p>“If you don’t put a lot of money into it, you’re not going to get the most out of it,” Duane said. “I can see why people would think, ‘Oh, you don’t need a lot of money. You just throw on your shoes, throw on your shorts and run.’ It’s not that simple.”</p>
<p>Among the 47 college athletes, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2018.1547962">94%</a> played sports by kindergarten and 77% continually played on club teams that typically cost <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2018.1547962">$1,000-$4,000 annually</a>. <a href="https://doi.org/10.32674/hepe.v5i1.1359">Paying for private coaching</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.32674/hepe.v5i1.1359">elite training camps</a> was also common and even more expensive.</p>
<p>As Malcolm noted, developing athletic talent requires commitments of time and energy, too. Nearly 80% of the 47 college athletes played sports <a href="https://doi.org/10.17763/1943-5045-88.3.355">5-6 days</a> per week in high school and 36% practiced <a href="https://doi.org/10.17763/1943-5045-88.3.355">twice per day</a>. Wealthier athletes could invest this time because they were <a href="https://doi.org/10.17763/1943-5045-88.3.355">largely freed from work and household responsibilities</a>. Also, their parents had <a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">high-paying and flexible jobs</a>.</p>
<p>These sport-related investments mirror families’ <a href="https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2010.0105">academic investments</a>. Beyond being better prepared to help pay for college, wealthier families often <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo18009024.html">invest in private tutoring, SAT preparatory classes and college admissions coaches</a>, which help make their children stand out as college applicants.</p>
<p>Our study of 10th graders confirms that parents’ wealth and education <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0038040711411280">enhance college expectations</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">and the likelihood of becoming a college athlete</a>. These things matter <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.2020-0142">beyond athletic merit</a>.</p>
<h2>Know-how</h2>
<p>Finally, having parents who went to college helps students <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2021/05/18/first-generation-college-graduates-lag-behind-their-peers-on-key-economic-outcomes/">do well in school and get into college</a>. College graduates are <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2013.816037">more aware of and comfortable</a> with the processes of preparing for college and applying to college. This is because they have generally done well in school, know other successful college students and learn about their experiences, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2006.0012">are more likely to know and seek information about college admissions</a>.</p>
<p>This helps them find out <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122414565814">what admissions officers look for in applicants</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">Erwin</a>, a white man with college-educated parents, initially played soccer and baseball but described himself as second-rate. His mother learned through friends that participation in niche sports, like rowing, increases admission chances. So, she signed her older son up for fencing and Erwin for rowing. Erwin eventually rowed in college. </p>
<p>Colleges <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/ct-spt-ivy-league-admissions-rowing-20190331-story.html">commonly sponsor niche sports and offer admission advantages</a> to athletes who play them. It’s <a href="https://www.abebooks.com/9781933060460/Game-All-American-Race-Champions-Children-1933060468/plp">easier to become a standout rower than basketball player</a>.</p>
<p>Learning about college recruiting offers <a href="https://doi.org/10.17763/1943-5045-88.3.355">big advantages</a>, too.</p>
<p>Knowing that coaches <a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781442266285/How-College-Athletics-Are-Hurting-Girls-Sports-The-Pay-to-Play-Pipeline">largely control athletic admissions</a> is key. Also, it helps to learn that athletes can do things that are looked at favorably by college recruiters. This includes purposefully <a href="https://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=22612">pursuing a less-popular sport, creating attractive marketing materials that highlight their athletic achievements and include recommendation letters from respected coaches, and taking unofficial campus visits</a>. Athletes who effectively used this knowledge could be mediocre at their sport and still get <a href="https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/special-admission/9781978821200">admission offers</a> from colleges. </p>
<h2>What does this mean?</h2>
<p>One way to reduce the negative effects of needing money to play and succeed in sports is to work together within our communities and as a society to embrace a <a href="https://www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/sport-all-play-life-playbook-get-every-kid-game/">sports-for-all, play-for-life</a> ethic. This approach can help make sure that sports are more inclusive, athletic talent is nurtured and that the benefits of sports participation are provided to more people throughout their lives.</p>
<p>[<em>Over 110,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=100Ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/167334/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Students who come from families that are more well-off financially have an advantage in their quest to become a college athlete, researchers have found.Kirsten Hextrum, Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, University of OklahomaChris Knoester, Associate Professor of Sociology, The Ohio State UniversityJames Tompsett, PhD Candidate, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1636262021-07-12T12:29:11Z2021-07-12T12:29:11ZPoverty in 2021 looks different than in 1964 – but the US hasn’t changed how it measures who’s poor since LBJ began his war<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410488/original/file-20210708-27-1v5n3jy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=317%2C24%2C5115%2C4194&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Poverty in America has changed since the 1960s.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/news-photo/700185625?adppopup=true">Morton Broffman/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson <a href="https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/lbj1964stateoftheunion.htm">famously declared war on poverty</a>. </p>
<p>“The richest nation on Earth can afford to win it,” he told Congress in his first State of the Union address. “We cannot afford to lose it.” </p>
<p>Yet as the administration was to learn on both the domestic and foreign battlefields, a country marching off to war must have a credible estimate of the enemy’s size and strength. Surprisingly, up until this point, the U.S. had no official measure of poverty and therefore no statistics on its scope, shape or changing nature. The U.S. needed to come up with a way of measuring how many people in America were poor.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://brownschool.wustl.edu/Faculty-and-Research/Pages/Mark-Rank.aspx">I discuss</a> in my recently published book “<a href="https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/confronting-poverty/book262548">Confronting Poverty</a>,” the approach that the government came up with in the 1960s is still – <a href="https://www.stlouisfed.org/publications/regional-economist/july-2012/understanding-poverty-measures-and-the-call-to-update-them">despite its many shortcomings</a> – the government’s official measure of poverty and used to determine eligibility for hundreds of billions of dollars in federal aid. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman carries a box of food to a car waiting at a food bank in Los Angeles" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410489/original/file-20210708-23-1f7tex8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The need for food aid exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/license/1297847903">Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Counting the poor</h2>
<p>Broadly speaking, poverty means not having the money to purchase the basic necessities to maintain a minimally adequate life, such as food, shelter and clothing.</p>
<p>The government came up with <a href="https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty.html">its official method for counting poor people</a> in the mid-1960s. </p>
<p>First, it asks, what does it cost to purchase a minimally adequate diet during the year for a particularly sized family? That number is then multiplied by three, and you have arrived at the poverty line. That’s it. </p>
<p>If a family’s income falls above the line it is not considered in poverty, while those below the line are counted as poor. </p>
<p>What about all the other basic necessities, such as housing, clothing and health care? That’s where the multiplier of three comes in. When the poverty thresholds were devised, <a href="https://www.ssa.gov/history/fisheronpoverty.htm">research indicated</a> that the typical family spent approximately one-third of its income on food and the remaining two-thirds on all other expenses.</p>
<p>Therefore, the logic was that if a minimally adequate diet could be purchased for a particular dollar amount, multiplying that figure by three would give the amount of income needed to purchase the basic necessities for a minimally adequate life. </p>
<p>Back in 1963, that <a href="https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-poverty/historical-poverty-people.html">translated into a poverty line</a> of US$3,128 for a family of four. In 2019, the same family’s poverty line <a href="https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2020/demo/p60-270.pdf">stood at $26,172</a>. For an interesting contrast, <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/162587/americans-say-family-four-needs-nearly-60k.aspx">that’s less than half what the average American polled</a> in 2013 said was the “smallest amount of money” a family of four needed to get by, or $58,000.</p>
<p>The federal government adjusts the poverty line annually to reflect increases in the cost of living. The cutoff itself varies by the number of people in the household, while a household’s annual income is based upon the earnings of everyone currently residing within it. </p>
<p>Using this measure, <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2020/demo/p60-270.html">10.5% of the U.S. population</a> was in poverty in 2019, the most recent data available.</p>
<p>Keep in mind, though, these thresholds represent impoverishment at its most opulent level. Among those living below the poverty line, <a href="https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2020/demo/income-poverty/p60-270.html">45% live in “deep” poverty</a>, which means they live on less than half of the official poverty line.</p>
<p>The government uses the official poverty line as the base to determine who’s eligible for a range of social programs, from Medicaid to the <a href="https://theconversation.com/scaling-back-snap-for-self-reliance-clashes-with-the-original-goals-of-food-stamps-128839">Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program</a>. For example, to qualify for SNAP, a household <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/a-quick-guide-to-snap-eligibility-and-benefits">must be below 130% of the poverty line</a> for its size. </p>
<p><iframe id="bQ8O1" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/bQ8O1/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>Other measures of poverty</h2>
<p><a href="https://ssir.org/articles/entry/beyond_the_poverty_line">Most analysts</a>, however, consider the official poverty line to be an extremely conservative measure of economic hardship.</p>
<p>A major reason for this is that families today have to spend much more on things other than food than they did in the 1960s. For example, <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CPIHOSNS">housing costs have surged over 800%</a> since then. </p>
<p>For that reason, some critics say the multiplier of three <a href="https://www.ssa.gov/history/fisheronpoverty.html">should be raised to four</a> or <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/why-the-united-states-needs-an-improved-measure-of-poverty/">even higher</a>. Taking that step would result in a much larger percentage of the population being seen as in poverty, making them eligible for anti-poverty benefits. </p>
<p>In response, in 2011 the census bureau <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2020/demo/p60-272.html">developed an alternative measure of poverty</a>, called the Supplemental Poverty Measure. This method takes into account a number of factors that the official poverty measure does not, such as differences in cost of living across the country. The result pushes the poverty rate up just a tad, to <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2020/demo/p60-272.html">11.7% for 2019</a>. This measure is mostly used today by academics and researchers.</p>
<p>Another method, <a href="https://tcf.org/content/report/american-poverty-measured-relative-prevailing-standards-time/">common in many high-income countries</a>, ignores the cost of living calculations entirely.</p>
<p>The European Union, for example, defines poverty as the percentage of the population that earns below one half of whatever the median income is. For example, in the U.S., the <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2020/demo/p60-270.html">median income in 2019 was $68,703</a>, which means anyone earning less than $34,351 would be deemed poor. By that measure, the U.S. <a href="https://data.oecd.org/inequality/poverty-rate.htm#indicator-chart">would have a poverty rate of 17.8%</a>. </p>
<p>In fact, back in 1959, the poverty line for a family of four <a href="https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2020/demo/p60-270.pdf">was about half of median income in the U.S.</a> Today, it’s about a quarter, which means the federal government’s definition of who is poor hasn’t kept up with overall rising standards of living. </p>
<p>One other approach is based on the idea that poverty is more than just a lack of income and should reflect economic insecurity more broadly, such as not having unemployment or health insurance. The census recently calculated what poverty might look from this perspective and concluded <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/working-papers/2021/demo/SEHSD-WP2021-03.html">38% of Americans experienced</a> one or more aspects of deprivation in 2019. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="President Lyndon B. Johnson delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House of Representatives as lawmakers and other look on." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=143%2C175%2C2851%2C1845&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410478/original/file-20210708-19-1bv9f5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lyndon B. Johnson declared a ‘war on poverty’ in 1964.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/LBJStateOfTheUnion/dbb222a20a4d4f6cb4d9fcf1842bcd4f/photo?Query=johnson%20war%20on%20poverty&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=19&currentItemNo=7">AP Photo</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The only way to win the war</h2>
<p>Why does it matter how a society measures poverty? </p>
<p>It matters because in order to address a problem, you must have a clear understanding of its scope. By using an extremely conservative measurement such as the federal poverty line, the U.S. minimizes the extent and depth of poverty in the country.</p>
<p>An inaccurate poverty line inevitably also limits the number of impoverished people who qualify for much-needed federal and state assistance. During the COVID-19 pandemic, <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/covid-poverty-america/">millions of people would have fallen into poverty</a> were it not for less conditional coronavirus aid from the federal government, such as the <a href="https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/economic-impact-payments">three rounds of economic impact checks</a> and <a href="https://www.dol.gov/coronavirus/unemployment-insurance">supplemental federal employment insurance</a>. </p>
<p>Many Americans in the past have been rudely surprised at just how inadequate America’s safety net is, at least in part because it’s based on outdated federal poverty thresholds. Broadening the definition of poverty would ensure it’s more likely to be there to support people in a crisis. </p>
<p>Ultimately, poverty will touch the majority of Americans at some point in their lives. My own research shows that roughly 6 in 10 Americans will spend <a href="https://confrontingpoverty.org/poverty-facts-and-myths/most-americans-will-experience-poverty/">at least one of their adult years below the official poverty line</a>. </p>
<p>But if the U.S. ever hopes to finally win the war LBJ began in 1964, the poor need to be seen in order for the government to lift them out of poverty. </p>
<p>[<em>Insight, in your inbox each day.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=insight">You can get it with The Conversation’s email newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/163626/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Robert Rank does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Newer measures of poverty may do a better job of counting America’s poor, which is necessary to helping them.Mark Robert Rank, Professor of Social Welfare, Washington University in St. LouisLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1585722021-04-15T12:40:43Z2021-04-15T12:40:43ZHow Baptists hold differing views on the resurrection of Christ and why this matters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395139/original/file-20210414-13-2z3xso.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=13%2C0%2C2976%2C1972&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Resurrection of Christ depicted in 14th-century fresco in Chora Church, Istanbul, Turkey.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/resurrection-fresco-in-chora-church-istanbul-turkey-royalty-free-image/124516452?adppopup=true">LP7/Collections E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>An updated version of this article was published on April 14, 2022. <a href="https://theconversation.com/christians-hold-many-views-on-jesus-resurrection-a-theologian-explains-the-differing-views-among-baptists-181386">Read it here</a>.</em></p>
<p>Early on April 4 morning, the following message appeared on the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2021/04/05/raphael-warnock-deletes-tweet-easter-resurrection-jeremiah-wright/">Twitter account</a> of the Rev. Raphael Warnock, the newly elected U.S. senator from Georgia: “The meaning of Easter is more transcendent than the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Whether you are Christian or not, through a commitment to helping others we are able to save ourselves.”</p>
<p>He later deleted the tweet, but not before strong reaction from both conservative and progressive Christians. Some conservative Christians <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/rev-warnock-claims-people-can-save-themselves-in-easter-tweet.html">denounced Warnock as a “heretic”</a> for, in their view, downplaying the story of Jesus’ bodily resurrection and for claiming that humans can save themselves rather than God, who alone saves humans from their sins. Other Christians came to <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/white-evangelicals-unchristian-attacks-on-raphael-warnock-attacks-say-it-all?ref=scroll">Warnock’s defense</a>, citing his credentials as a theologian and pastor of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church. Rather than condemn his message, they applauded him for sharing a more humanistic message that included non-Christians. </p>
<p>As a Baptist minister and <a href="https://virginia.academia.edu/JasonOEvans">theologian</a> myself, I believe it is important to understand how Baptists hold differing views on the meaning of the Resurrection. </p>
<h2>The Resurrection</h2>
<p>Easter is the Christian holiday which commemorates the story of Jesus Christ’s resurrection. <a href="https://www.eerdmans.com/Products/2120/exploring-and-proclaiming-the-apostles-creed.aspx">According to the Christian faith</a>, resurrection is the pivotal event on which “God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day” after he was <a href="https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9780800628864/The-Crucifixion-of-Jesus">crucified</a> by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate and then buried in a tomb owned by <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+15&version=NRSV">Joseph of Arimathea</a>. </p>
<p>While none of the <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-gospels-and-jesus-9780199246168?cc=us&lang=en&">four canonical Gospels</a> of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John describe the actual event of the resurrection in detail, they nonetheless give varying reports about <a href="http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/the-story-of-jesus-in-history-and-faith/338111">the empty tomb and Christ’s post-resurrection appearances</a> among his followers both in Galilee and Jerusalem.</p>
<p>They also report that it was women who discovered the empty tomb and received and proclaimed the first message that Christ was risen from the dead. These narratives passed down orally among the earliest Christian communities and <a href="https://www.eerdmans.com/Products/6782/the-oral-gospel-tradition.aspx">then codified in the Gospel writings</a> beginning some 30 years after Jesus’ death.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9780800626792/The-Resurrection-of-the-Son-of-God">Earliest Christians believed</a> that by raising Jesus of Nazareth from the dead, God vindicated Jesus from the torture and death he unjustly incurred at the order of Pilate, and that Jesus now as the “crucified and risen Lord” shares in God’s power to transform the creation and put an end to evil and suffering.</p>
<p>By affirming the resurrection, Christians do not mean that Jesus’ body was merely resuscitated. Rather, as New Testament scholar <a href="https://candler.emory.edu/faculty/emeriti-profiles/johnson-luke-timothy.html">Luke Timothy Johnson</a> <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-real-jesus-luke-timothy-johnson?variant=32117576564770">indicates</a>, resurrection means that “[Jesus] entered into an entirely new form of existence.” </p>
<p>As the risen Christ, Jesus is believed to share God’s power to transform all life and also to share this same power with his followers. So the resurrection is believed to be something that happened not only to Jesus, but also an experience that happens <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+15&version=NRSV">to his followers</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Christ standing before Roman governor Pontius Pilate, in a tile from the Cathedral of Siena, Italy." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=475&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=475&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=475&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395102/original/file-20210414-17-gwacnp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Christ before Pilate: Detail of a tile from the Cathedral of Siena, Italy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/siena-museo-dellopera-metropolitana-christ-before-pilate-news-photo/146325687?adppopup=true">DeAgostini/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Opposing views</h2>
<p>Over the years, Christians have engaged in passionate debates over this central doctrine of Christian faith.</p>
<p>Two major approaches emerged: the “liberal” view and the “conservative” or “traditional” view. Current perspectives on the resurrection have been predominated by questions: “Was Jesus’ body literally raised from the dead?” and “What relevance does the resurrection have for those struggling for justice?” </p>
<p>These questions emerged in the wake of <a href="https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9780800637958/Modern-Christian-Thought-Second-Edition">theological modernism</a>, a European and North American movement dating back to the mid-19th century that sought to reinterpret Christianity to accommodate the emergence of modern science, history and ethics.</p>
<p>Also known as <a href="https://www.wjkbooks.com/Products/0664223540/the-making-of-american-liberal-theology.aspx">liberal</a> theology, theological modernism led liberal Christian theologians to attempt to create an alternative path between the rigid orthodoxies of Christian churches and the rationalism of atheists and others. </p>
<p>This meant that liberal Christians were willing to revise or jettison cherished Christian beliefs, such as the bodily resurrection of Jesus, if such beliefs could not be explained against the bar of human reason. </p>
<h2>Baptist views on the Resurrection</h2>
<p>Just like all other Christian denominations, Baptists are divided on the issue of the bodily resurrection of Jesus. Arguably, what may be unique about the group is that <a href="https://www.helwys.com/sh-books/the-baptist-identity/">Baptists believe</a> that no external religious authority can force an individual member to adhere to the tenets of Christian faith in any prescribed way. One must be free to accept or reject any teaching of the church. </p>
<p>In the early 20th century, Baptists in the United States found themselves on both sides of a schism within American Christianity over doctrinal issues, known as the <a href="https://global.oup.com/ushe/product/fundamentalism-and-american-culture-9780195300475?cc=us&lang=en&">fundamentalist-modernist</a> controversy. </p>
<p>The Rev. Harry Emerson Fosdick, a liberal Baptist pastor who served First Presbyterian Church and later Riverside Church in Manhattan, <a href="https://www.mupress.org/A-Genetic-History-Of-Baptist-Thought-With-Special-Reference-To-Baptists-In-Britain-And-North-America-P1131.aspx">rejected the bodily resurrection of Jesus</a>. Rather, Fosdick viewed the resurrection as a “persistence in [Christ’s] personality.” </p>
<p>In 1922, Fosdick delivered his famous sermon “<a href="http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5070/">Shall the Fundamentalists Win?</a>” rebuking fundamentalists for their failure to tolerate difference on doctrinal matters such as the infallibility of the Bible, the virgin birth, and bodily Resurrection, among others, and for downplaying the weightier matter of addressing the societal needs of the day.</p>
<p>In his <a href="https://www.grandcentralpublishing.com/titles/clayborne-carson/the-autobiography-of-martin-luther-king-jr/9780759520370/">autobiography</a>, the late civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. explains that in his early adolescence he denied the bodily resurrection of Jesus.</p>
<p>While attending Crozer Seminary in 1949, <a href="https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/what-experiences-christians-living-early-christian-century-led-christian">King wrote a paper </a> trying to make sense of what led to the development of the Christian doctrine of Jesus’ bodily resurrection. For King, the experience of the early followers of Jesus was at the root of their belief in his resurrection.</p>
<p>“They had been captivated by the magnetic power of his personality,” King argued. “This basic experience led to the faith that he could never die.” In other words, the bodily resurrection of Jesus simply is the outward expression of early Christian experience, not an actual, or at least, a verifiable event in human history. </p>
<p>Others within the Baptist movement disagreed. Like his fundamentalist forebears, conservative evangelical Baptist theologian <a href="https://www.crossway.org/books/god-revelation-and-authority-tpb/">Carl F.H. Henry argued in 1976</a> that all Christian doctrine can be rationally explained and can persuade any nonbeliever. Henry rigorously defended the bodily resurrection of Christ as a historical occurrence by appealing to the Gospels’ telling of the empty tomb and Christ’s appearances among his disciples after his resurrection.</p>
<p>In his six-volume magnum opus, “<a href="https://www.crossway.org/books/god-revelation-and-authority-tpb/">God, Revelation, and Authority</a>,” Henry read these two elements of the Gospels as historical records that can be verified through modern historical methods.</p>
<h2>Alternative views</h2>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Christ with lifted arms, his head encircled by a halo, or nimbus, wearing a tunic and a mantle." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=762&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=762&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=762&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=958&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=958&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/395137/original/file-20210414-16-54fl6w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=958&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Christians hold a diversity of perspectives on Christ’s resurrection.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/italy-basilicata-matera-cripta-di-santa-maria-alle-malve-news-photo/187388766?adppopup=true">Bruno Balestrini / Electa / Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Despite their predominance, the liberal and conservative arguments on the resurrection of Jesus are not the only approaches held among Baptists. </p>
<p>In his book “Resurrection and Discipleship,” Baptist theologian <a href="https://wipfandstock.com/9781592445172/resurrection-and-discipleship/">Thorwald Lorenzen</a> also outlines what he calls the “evangelical” approach, which seeks to transcend the distinctions of “liberal” and “conservative” approaches. He affirms, with the conservatives, the historical reality of the Resurrection, but agrees with the liberals that such an event cannot be verified in the modern historical sense. </p>
<p>Other than these, there is a “liberation” approach, which stresses the social and political implications of the Resurrection. Baptists who hold this view primarily interpret the resurrection as God’s response and commitment to liberating those who, like Jesus, <a href="https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9780800698782/We-Have-Been-Believers">experience poverty and oppression</a>.</p>
<p>Given this diversity of perspectives on the Resurrection, Baptists are not unique among Christians in engaging matters of faith practice. However, I argue that Baptists may be distinct in how they engage the question of Jesus’ resurrection and why it matters for their faith.</p>
<p>According to Warnock’s tweet, the meaning of Easter goes beyond the question of what happened to Jesus’ body, making resurrection a matter of what human beings can do to make a more just and humane society regardless of religious affiliation. </p>
<p>However, as <a href="https://www.faithwire.com/2021/04/04/this-is-literal-heresy-sen-raphael-warnock-posts-troubling-meaning-of-easter-tweet/">some Baptists protested</a>, the meaning of the resurrection is a matter of precisely what happened to Jesus’ body some 20 centuries ago – which has implications for how Christians live out their beliefs today. </p>
<p>[<em>3 media outlets, 1 religion newsletter.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/this-week-in-religion-76/?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=religion-3-in-1">Get stories from The Conversation, AP and RNS.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/158572/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jason Oliver Evans does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Some among the Baptist movement interpret the Resurrection as God’s response and commitment to liberating the poor and the oppressed.Jason Oliver Evans, Ph.D. Candidate in Religious Studies, University of VirginiaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1559432021-02-28T19:07:45Z2021-02-28T19:07:45Z3 ways to vaccinate the world and make sure everyone benefits, rich and poor<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/386577/original/file-20210225-17-sdydn7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1%2C3%2C1020%2C580&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/virus-covid19-globe-plexus-coronavirus-low-1684770571">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-vaccinations-tracker.html">As of February 25</a>, a total of 221.7 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered around the world. Well over one-third of these doses were in just two countries — the United States and the United Kingdom. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4750">study</a> in mid-November analysed commitments to buy 7.48 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines. Just over half will go to the 14% of the world’s population who live in high-income countries. </p>
<p>It’s <a href="https://www.eiu.com/n/85-poor-countries-will-not-have-access-to-coronavirus-vaccines/">estimated</a> most high-income countries will achieve widespread vaccination coverage by the end of 2021. Most middle-income countries will not achieve this until mid- to late 2022, while the world’s poorest countries, including almost every country in Africa and some in our own Asia-Pacific region, will have to wait until 2023.</p>
<p>This <a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-highlights-the-painful-political-truth-about-health-inequality-is-social-democracy-the-answer-135543">inequality</a> is clearly a moral outrage. But it is also a surefire way to perpetuate the pandemic’s devastating health, social and economic impacts on the whole world.</p>
<h2>Why everyone benefits from vaccine equity</h2>
<p>There are many reasons why rich countries should do all they can to ensure <a href="https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/what-is-vaccine-equity-covid-19/">global vaccine equity</a> — in which COVID-19 vaccines are distributed fairly to different populations, including people of different means and backgrounds. </p>
<p>First, there is the <a href="https://jme.bmj.com/content/47/3/137">moral argument</a>. Given the vaccines already exist, every day that goes on results in deaths we could have prevented.</p>
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<p>Second, the longer it takes to eradicate the virus globally, the more it will mutate, possibly <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk-south-african-brazilian-a-virologist-explains-each-covid-variant-and-what-they-mean-for-the-pandemic-154547">reducing the effectiveness</a> of the vaccines. That would affect us all.</p>
<p>Third, as long as the virus is here, <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-first-economic-modelling-of-coronavirus-scenarios-is-grim-for-australia-the-world-132759">trade flows</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/ive-heard-covid-is-leading-to-medicine-shortages-what-can-i-do-if-my-medicine-is-out-of-stock-153628">global supply chains</a> will be severely disrupted. Avoiding this is also in our own interests if we want to see foreign tourists and students return to our shores. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-vaccine-nationalism-could-doom-plan-for-global-access-to-a-covid-19-vaccine-145056">Why 'vaccine nationalism' could doom plan for global access to a COVID-19 vaccine</a>
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<p>A <a href="https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w28395/w28395.pdf">recent study</a> found high-income countries may bear 13-49% of global losses — which could <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2021/02/11/rich-countries-have-a-moral-obligation-to-help-poor-countries-get-vaccines-but-catastrophic-scenarios-are-overrated/">be up to US$9 trillion</a> — arising from an inequitable distribution of vaccines in 2021.</p>
<p>Finally, a prolonged pandemic might result in even more poverty, destabilising the already fragile livelihoods of millions of poor people in low- and middle-income countries. This, in turn, <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/world/2021-01-26/sting-covid-19s-tail">could result in conflict</a>, undermining global political stability, which would affect us all.</p>
<p>Here are three ways to ensure global vaccine equity.</p>
<h2>1. The COVAX facility — but there are issues</h2>
<p>A number of large middle-income countries have begun to roll out their vaccination programs, including <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-17/indias-massive-covid-19-vaccine-drive/13031846">India</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-55699535">Brazil</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2021/feb/07/mexico-covid-vaccine-program-website">Mexico</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-chile-became-an-unlikely-winner-in-the-covid-19-vaccine-race-154614">Chile</a>, <a href="https://www.africanews.com/2021/01/25/egypt-begins-its-covid-19-vaccination-campaign-with-china-s-sinopharm//">Egypt</a>, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/south-africa-begins-covid-19-vaccination-campaign">South Africa</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-30/indonesia-targets-young-workers-with-covid-19-jabs/13099212">Indonesia</a>. <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/56100076">Only a few</a> African countries have begun their vaccination programs, of which just one, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/zimbabwe-rolls-out-coronavirus-vaccination-program">Zimbabwe</a>, is a low-income country. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-chile-became-an-unlikely-winner-in-the-covid-19-vaccine-race-154614">How Chile became an unlikely winner in the COVID-19 vaccine race</a>
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<p>Some middle-income countries and most low-income countries will be relying on the World Health Organization (WHO)-led <a href="https://www.who.int/initiatives/act-accelerator/covax">COVAX facility</a>, to which Australia <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/australia-now-eligible-to-purchase-covid-19-vaccine-doses-through-covax">contributes funding</a>. This aims to administer two billion doses of vaccine, starting with health-care workers, in poorer countries by the end of 2021.</p>
<p>However, COVAX doses will cover only up to 20% of the population of each country. And COVAX supplies may be slow to arrive, especially if delays in the production and delivery to richer countries push back delivery dates for poorer ones. </p>
<p>For instance, Ghana, the first of 92 countries to receive vaccines through this initiative, only received its 600,000 doses <a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/24-02-2021-covid-19-vaccine-doses-shipped-by-the-covax-facility-head-to-ghana-marking-beginning-of-global-rollout">last week</a>.</p>
<p>Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2021/2/22/un-to-rich-nations-dont-undermine-covax-vaccine-programme?__twitter_impression=true">has said</a> that rich countries’ approaches to manufacturers to secure more vaccine doses are undermining COVAX’s effort to achieve its goal of purchasing two billion doses of vaccines to administer during 2021.</p>
<h2>2. Countries can produce their own vaccines</h2>
<p>Low- and middle-income countries can also produce COVID-19 vaccines themselves, an option taken by nations including India, Thailand, Vietnam and Cuba. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.seruminstitute.com/">Serum Institute of India</a> is one of the <a href="https://www.pri.org/stories/2021-02-04/how-india-s-serum-institute-became-covid-19-vaccine-powerhouse">world’s largest manufacturers</a> of vaccines and has a <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/22/covid-19-vaccine-serum-institute-of-india-told-to-prioritize-domestic-demand.html">licence to produce</a> the AstraZeneca vaccine, which the WHO has approved for <a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/15-02-2021-who-lists-two-additional-covid-19-vaccines-for-emergency-use-and-covax-roll-out">emergency use</a>. </p>
<p>The company <a href="https://fortune.com/2021/02/22/covid-vaccine-india-serum-institute-supply-world-delay/">recently announced</a> it would manufacture vaccines for India before doses earmarked for the rest of the world, a move that may delay vaccine shipments to dozens of countries and hamper the firm’s plans to share its vaccine supply. India is also developing its own vaccine, from Bharat Biotech, which has <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-55520658">been approved in India</a>.</p>
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<p>Cuba has <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-56069577">four vaccines</a> <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4654/rr-6">under development</a>. The most promising in early trials is Soberana 2, which will start phase three clinical trials shortly. If successful, Cuba’s Finlay Institute plans to produce up to 100 million doses by the end of 2021.</p>
<p>In Thailand, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/2/18/thai-developed-covid-vaccine-to-proceed-to-human-trials">two vaccines</a> are under development by Chulalongkorn and Mahidol universities. Both are about to start human trials. </p>
<p>In Vietnam, Nanogen Pharmaceutical <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Vietnam-eyes-launch-of-homemade-COVID-vaccine-in-2nd-half-of-2021">has received</a> government go-ahead to start clinical trials of its vaccine Nanocovax. The company can produce two million doses a year but plans to increase that to 30 million doses in the next six months. </p>
<h2>3. Rich countries can donate spare vaccines</h2>
<p>Rich countries can donate vaccines to poorer countries. France’s President Emmanuel Macron <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56121062">said</a> richer countries should send up to 5% of their current vaccine supplies to poorer nations. There is little evidence other countries have followed France’s lead.</p>
<p>However, Russia and China have provided their own vaccines – <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/02/17/russia-should-sputnik-v-vaccine-as-a-soft-power-a72985">Sputnik V</a> and <a href="https://www.voanews.com/east-asia-pacific/voa-news-china/china-gives-vaccines-other-countries-not-its-elderly-chinese-over">Sinopharm</a>, respectively – to a number of low-income countries in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/vaccine-diplomacy-how-some-countries-are-using-covid-to-enhance-their-soft-power-155697">Vaccine diplomacy: how some countries are using COVID to enhance their soft power</a>
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<h2>What could Australia do?</h2>
<p>Australia has agreements to purchase enough vaccines (Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Novavax) to inoculate its population <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/node/18777/australias-vaccine-agreements">many times over</a>.</p>
<p>In addition to its <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/australia-now-eligible-to-purchase-covid-19-vaccine-doses-through-covax">pledge to COVAX</a>, Australia could contribute to vaccine equity in our region in two ways. </p>
<p>First, once CSL ramps up domestic production of the AstraZeneca vaccine, we could provide a portion of doses to our <a href="https://indopacifichealthsecurity.dfat.gov.au/australian-support-covid-19-vaccine-access-pacific-and-southeast-asia">close neighbours</a>, including Pacific nations and Indonesia. </p>
<p>Once the Therapeutic Goods Administration approves the <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/node/18777/australias-vaccine-agreements#novavax">Novavax vaccine</a>, which is likely to occur by the middle of the year, we could share our order of <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/node/18777/australias-vaccine-agreements#novavax">51 million doses</a> with poor countries in the Asia-Pacific region. </p>
<p>These doses could be provided either free or at heavily discounted prices. Deliveries should be made directly from the manufacturer rather than sending “leftovers” from Australia, which could lead to expired vaccines ending up in neighbouring countries.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-vaccines-rich-countries-have-bought-more-than-they-need-heres-how-they-could-be-redistributed-153732">COVID vaccines: rich countries have bought more than they need – here’s how they could be redistributed</a>
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<h2>In a nutshell</h2>
<p>This is no time for short-sighted <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2021/2/7/what-is-vaccine-nationalism-and-why-is-it-so-harmful">vaccine nationalism</a>. Encouragingly, Australia has signalled its intention <a href="https://indopacifichealthsecurity.dfat.gov.au/australian-support-covid-19-vaccine-access-pacific-and-southeast-asia">to support</a> the region.</p>
<p>But the <a href="https://www.eiu.com/n/85-poor-countries-will-not-have-access-to-coronavirus-vaccines/">projected two-year delay</a> between vaccinating the world’s rich and the poor is both morally unacceptable and the biggest impediment to the world’s health and economic recovery.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155943/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Toole receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council.</span></em></p>Fair global agreements, home-grown vaccines and sharing extra doses with poorer nations are all needed if we’re to ever emerge from this pandemic.Michael Toole, Professor of International Health, Burnet InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1418462020-08-03T12:00:19Z2020-08-03T12:00:19ZMillions of America’s working poor may lose out on key anti-poverty tax credit because of the pandemic<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/350687/original/file-20200801-22-1qjeezj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=26%2C17%2C3000%2C1967&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Demand for food aid has soared during the pandemic.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Joe Raedle/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The pandemic is driving American families to the edge, with tens of millions at risk of <a href="https://theconversation.com/landlord-leaning-eviction-courts-are-about-to-make-the-coronavirus-housing-crisis-a-lot-worse-142803">losing their homes</a> and over 1 in 10 U.S. adults reporting their households <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/more-relief-needed-to-alleviate-hardship">didn’t have enough to eat</a> in the previous week. </p>
<p>While <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/28/us/politics/coronavirus-relief-bills-house-senate.html">Congress debates extending unemployment benefits</a> that expired on July 31 and other additional aid, there’s an important program that already exists that could help struggling Americans get through the crisis however long it lasts. Known as the <a href="https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/individuals/earned-income-tax-credit">earned income tax credit</a>, or EITC, it provides aid primarily to the working poor. In a typical year, <a href="https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/supplemental-poverty-measure/library/publications.All.html">it lifts more than 8.5 million people out of poverty</a>, while improving the health and well-being of parents and children. </p>
<p>Since the credit depends on earned income, many families may be at risk of losing all or some of the benefit because <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CCSA">so many were laid off</a> as <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-economy-shutdown-coronavirus-saved-2-7-million-lives/">economies in many states shut down</a>. Even as restaurants and other businesses reopen, it’s <a href="https://voxeu.org/article/covid-19-and-labour-reallocation-evidence-us">likely that many of those who lost</a> their jobs <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/07/economy/job-losses-coronavirus/index.html">will remain unemployed or underemployed</a> for many months or longer. </p>
<p>Our own research shows changes to the structure of the U.S. economy, with the <a href="https://github.com/alice1020/COVID-unemployment-and-income-supports/blob/master/Occupational_inequality_and_COVID-19_Modifying_ex.md">sharp growth of low-wage and unstable jobs</a>, is weakening the EITC’s effectiveness at fighting poverty.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/elainemaag/2020/06/03/heroes-act-would-expand-the-eitc-for-childless-workers-and-help-fight-recession/#1621b8b96810">Some lawmakers are trying to reform</a> the EITC as part of the next coronavirus bailout to ensure it helps more Americans and make it more like a <a href="https://theconversation.com/search/result?sg=91b5ab76-015f-42ce-9676-67954badd307&sp=1&sr=1&url=%2Fbasic-income-for-all-could-lift-millions-out-of-poverty-and-change-how-we-think-about-inequality-53030">basic income guarantee</a>. We believe doing so would not only ensure low-income Americans continue to have access to this vital tax credit during the pandemic, additional changes could also strengthen the program for years to come. </p>
<h2>The EITC success story</h2>
<p>The earned income tax credit, which <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/policy-basics-the-earned-income-tax-credit">supplements earnings for many low- and moderate-income workers</a>, has helped buffer economic hardship for single parents and other recipients since it was created in 1975. </p>
<p>Eligible taxpayers receive the credit after they file their taxes. And unlike a deduction, even those who didn’t pay any income tax can receive the credit, which they’ll get as part of their refund. Twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia <a href="https://www.urban.org/policy-centers/cross-center-initiatives/state-and-local-finance-initiative/state-and-local-backgrounders/state-earned-income-tax-credits">also offer their own EITCs</a>, typically based on the federal credit. </p>
<p>In 2019, taxpayers <a href="https://www.ncsl.org/research/labor-and-employment/earned-income-tax-credits-for-working-families.aspx">received about US$63 billion in credits</a> through the federal EITC, making it the government’s largest cash safety net program for working families with children. Recipients qualify for the credit based on how much money they earn and depending on their marital status and number of children. The benefit rises with each dollar earned until reaching a peak and then phasing out. </p>
<p>For example, in 2019, a <a href="https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/saipe/guidance/model-input-data/cpsasec.html">single person earning $13,545 a year received $392</a>, while a typical family of four with an annual income of $22,261 received roughly $2,951 – which comes out to an extra $250 a month.</p>
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<p>Put another way, a family with one child <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/32">receives an average credit</a> of 34 cents for every dollar of earned income, which rises to 40 cents for two and 45 cents for three or more children. </p>
<p>The tax credit has been tremendously successful. In 2018, the latest data available, the EITC lifted <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/earned-income-tax-credit-and-child-tax-credit-have-powerful-antipoverty-impact-8">about 10.6 million people out of poverty and reduced its severity for another 17.5 million</a>. And since its inception, <a href="https://www.nber.org/books/moff14-1">it has reduced child poverty</a> by 25%. </p>
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<p>But the benefits extend well beyond providing struggling families with more income. Research shows the credit <a href="http://www.nber.org/papers/w16296.pdf">has helped improve the mental and physical health of mothers</a>, <a href="https://www.doi.org/10.1111/ppe.12211">improves perinatal health of mothers and their children</a>, <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27056961/">improves child development</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3104729">reduces incidents of low birth weight among infants</a> and <a href="https://www.doi.org/10.1257/aer.102.5.1927">improves children’s cognitive function</a>. </p>
<p>It also <a href="http://www.crfb.org/blogs/eitc-attracts-bipartisan-praise-and-proposals">enjoys strong bipartisan support</a> because of its focus on encouraging and supporting working. </p>
<p>But the EITC only helps individuals able to find work, which becomes a bigger challenge in a pandemic or <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w19785">severe recession</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://github.com/alice1020/COVID-unemployment-and-income-supports">Our unpublished calculations</a> from a <a href="https://www.bls.gov/cps">national representative survey</a> showed that about a fifth of the <a href="https://www.eitc.irs.gov/partner-toolkit/basic-marketing-communication-materials/eitc-fast-facts/eitc-fast-facts">25 million</a> EITC beneficiaries in 2019 lost their jobs from March to April and over 16% remained unemployed in June, the latest data we have available. That means over 4 million working families could lose a large portion of their benefits in 2021, depending on a variety of factors. </p>
<h2>Reforming the EITC</h2>
<p>While these problems are most obvious in a recession, they’ve worsened over the past four decades as the <a href="https://voxeu.org/article/work-past-work-future">labor market</a> <a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.308.299">has changed</a>.</p>
<p>The share of workers doing low-skill, low-wage work has jumped from 42% in 1980 to about 54% in 2016. And an increasing number of these jobs are in the precarious gig economy that doesn’t provide stable incomes. That means workers are less likely to see a steady aid from the EITC because the maximum benefits are gained when working full time at minimum wage.</p>
<p>The EITC’s also provides very little support to those without children. A nonpartisan think tank estimates that about 5.8 million adult workers without any children as dependents <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/5-8-20tax.pdf">are taxed into poverty</a> – or impoverished further – each year because their EITC is too small to offset their federal income and payroll taxes.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.hassan.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senators-hassan-and-shaheen-push-for-tax-credit-expansion-for-hard-working-families-in-next-covid-19-relief-package">House Democrats</a> are pushing to reform the EITC in the next coronavirus relief bill. Specifically, they’d like to tweak the credit’s phase-in so that workers receive more benefits for fewer hours worked, allowing those who lost their jobs and remained unemployed for the remainder of 2020 to maintain benefits similar to last year. They also would lower the minimum age for receiving the credit to 18 from 25 for certain vulnerable groups like those experiencing homeless. </p>
<p>We’d suggest also increasing the benefit for tax filers without children and lowering the minimum age for everyone so that the millions of young people graduating from high school and college into an economic recession can get additional support. </p>
<p>These reforms would <a href="https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/using-eitc-help-fight-economic-slowdown">not only help now</a> but could also deepen the impact of the EITC by creating an income floor for more people as the economy changes, essentially creating something very much like a basic income guarantee. A key difference, however, is that most universal basic income proposals <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-push-for-universal-basic-income-is-gaining-momentum-amid-the-pandemic-11595874035">don’t require recipients to work</a>. </p>
<p>While we cannot fully predict how interactions between job losses and the tax and benefit system will play out, this moment presents an opportunity to test reforms that would benefit low-income working families for years and decades to come.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/141846/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Hasdell receives funding from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alice Milivinti and David Rehkopf do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The earned income tax credit lifts around 6 million of the working poor out of poverty every year, but with the economy hammered by COVID-19, many might not get the benefit they need.Rebecca Hasdell, Postdoctoral fellow, Stanford UniversityAlice Milivinti, Postdoctoral Researcher, Stanford UniversityDavid Rehkopf, Associate Professor of Medicine, Stanford UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1383052020-05-15T11:56:17Z2020-05-15T11:56:17ZWithout intervention, model shows COVID-19 will drag at least 3.6 million Indonesians into poverty<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/333984/original/file-20200511-49558-s7f11n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A child in a poor and isolated village in Rote Island, East Nusa Tenggara.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shtterstock/Reezky Pradata)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The COVID-19 lockdowns are projected to cause a decline in economic growth due to the restrictions on labour activities and economic production.</p>
<p>For Indonesia – a developing country with the second-biggest population in East Asia and the Pacific – the human costs of the pandemic could be catastrophic.</p>
<p>The pandemic threatens to raise poverty again after decades of <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-can-indonesia-learn-from-past-policies-to-prevent-another-poverty-hike-during-the-pandemic-136702">positive trends in reducing the poverty rate</a>. It reached single digits (9.82%) for the first time in 2018.</p>
<p>Our team at the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) conducted simulations using household survey data to see how the pandemic – along with the <a href="https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/insights/2020/04/indonesia-government-and-institution-measures-in-response-to-covid.html">social safety nets</a> currently being provided – will affect poverty in Indonesia.</p>
<p>If the rate of economic growth slows to zero, our results indicate the poverty rate will rise to 10.54%. At least 3.6 million people will be plunged below the poverty line, adding to the 24.79 million people recorded in September 2019. </p>
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<strong>
Baca juga:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-can-indonesia-learn-from-past-policies-to-prevent-another-poverty-hike-during-the-pandemic-136702">What can Indonesia learn from past policies to prevent another poverty hike during the pandemic?</a>
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<h2>How does the model work?</h2>
<p>That result is based on the worst scenario should Indonesia’s GDP growth plummet to 0%.</p>
<p>Our simulations generated a total of 10 scenarios. These are based on two groups of assumptions.</p>
<p><em>First</em>, whether Indonesia is able to maintain its target economic (GDP) growth. We consider two scenarios, one using <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-01/indonesia-slashes-growth-forecast-as-virus-pandemic-takes-toll">the government’s current goal of 2.3%</a>, and another based on 0% growth.</p>
<p><em>Second</em>, how accurately the government can execute its three <a href="https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/insights/2020/04/indonesia-government-and-institution-measures-in-response-to-covid.html">recently expanded programs</a> – conditional cash transfer through the Family Hope Program, the Staple Food Assistance and also an unconditional cash transfer scheme – due to COVID-19.</p>
<p>Under an optimistic scenario, in which the government maintains <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-01/indonesia-slashes-growth-forecast-as-virus-pandemic-takes-toll">its growth target of 2.3%</a> supported by the “right” intervention, the poverty rate could be as low as 9.24%.</p>
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<p>This is only a slight increase from the baseline in September 2019, when poverty reached <a href="https://jakartaglobe.id/news/poverty-rate-lower-in-indonesia-report">a low of 9.22%</a>.</p>
<p>However, this is only possible if the government’s unconditional cash transfer program is perfectly targeted.</p>
<p>This means the assistance reaches every eligible person who who has been erroneously excluded from food assistance and conditional cash transfer through the Family Hope Program. Currently, only 42.6% and 44% of people enrolled in the Family Hope Program and food assistance, respectively, actually receive the assistance.</p>
<p>For the calculation itself, we used differing poverty thresholds to determine whether a person is poor or not – instead of just <a href="https://www.bps.go.id/subject/23/kemiskinan-dan-ketimpangan.html#subjekViewTab1">the national threshold</a> of around US$28.70 per month per person. We did this because economic conditions vary between provinces, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Baca juga:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/too-many-left-behind-the-failing-of-covid-19-prevention-measures-in-informal-settlements-and-slums-137288">Too many left behind: the failing of COVID-19 prevention measures in informal settlements and slums</a>
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<p>We considered at least four variables affecting people’s consumption during the pandemic:</p>
<ul>
<li><p><a href="https://microdata.bps.go.id/mikrodata/index.php/catalog/SUSENAS">current level of consumption</a> as a proxy for income</p></li>
<li><p>sector-specific economic growth (agriculture, services, or manufacturing), based on internal Bappenas data </p></li>
<li><p>employment status based on estimates of potential laid-off workers obtained from the Ministry of Manpower</p></li>
<li><p>receipts of government support through fiscal stimulus packages such as Family Hope Program, food assistance and unconditional cash transfer.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>These variables will determine people’s consumption levels by the end of 2020. If a person’s consumption is below the poverty threshold, it means he or she is poor. </p>
<h2>How certain can we be about these numbers?</h2>
<p>All projections related to the pandemic come with a wide margin of error; it is impossible to be certain about the magnitude of pandemic impacts. </p>
<p>If the GDP growth approaches a double-digit negative figure, as was the case <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w8330">during the 1998 financial crisis</a>, increases in poverty will be much larger than what this model suggests.</p>
<p>However, what is certain is that, regardless of the extent of government interventions and growth scenarios, poverty will rise everywhere for the first time in the developing world.</p>
<p>This includes Indonesia, at least in the short term.</p>
<h2>What does this mean for poverty alleviation?</h2>
<p>In keeping with the country’s newly earned democratic traditions, the government has encouraged open discussions on the likely impact on poverty. It has even prepared for <a href="https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/20/government-prepares-for-worst-including-zero-percent-growth-as-covid-19-hits.html">a zero-growth scenario</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/what-can-indonesia-learn-from-past-policies-to-prevent-another-poverty-hike-during-the-pandemic-136702">Lessons learned from past policies</a> have also led to significant improvements in policy planning.</p>
<p>However, success still depends on the capacity of local governments to efficiently manage existing cash assistance and other safety-net schemes, as well as actively updating databases for better targeting.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Baca juga:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/sailing-through-a-perfect-storm-of-covid-19-with-universal-basic-income-for-indonesia-135321">Sailing through a perfect storm of COVID-19 with universal basic income for Indonesia</a>
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</em>
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<p>Even for the Bappenas projections to materialise under a non-negative growth scenario, local government officials must be more pro-active in three aspects.</p>
<p>First, local supply chains should be protected to avoid food shortages and food price inflation.</p>
<p>Second, local government must identify and target the new poor emerging after the pandemic and reach out to those in informal sectors.</p>
<p>Third, after months of social assistance intervention and restrictions on economic activity, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340986096_Humanitarian_and_disaster_management_ecosystem_for_cash_transfer_programming_Understanding_institutional_and_operational_constraints_in_post-disaster_governance_in_Indonesia">economic empowerment programs</a> for those in informal sectors is essential to help them return to work when the economy restarts.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/138305/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fisca Miswari Aulia works for the National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maliki works for the National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>M Niaz Asadullah is affiliated with the Global Labor Organisation (GLO) and IZA Institute for the Study of Labor.</span></em></p>Bappenas conducted a simulation to predict how COVID-19 will impact poverty in Indonesia. Without intervention, the pandemic will drag at least 3.6 million Indonesians into poverty by the end of 2020.Fisca Miswari Aulia, Planner at Directorate of Poverty Reduction and Social Welfare , National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS)Maliki, Director for Poverty Alleviation and Development of Social Welfare, National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS)M Niaz Asadullah, Professor of Development Economics, University of MalayaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1359252020-04-16T12:19:23Z2020-04-16T12:19:23ZHow the rich reacted to the bubonic plague has eerie similarities to today’s pandemic<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328163/original/file-20200415-153326-1kb58l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C6%2C4467%2C3191&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Franz Xavier Winterhalter's 'The Decameron' (1837).</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-decameron-1837-found-in-the-collection-of-the-news-photo/464419221?adppopup=true&uiloc=thumbnail_more_search_results_adp">Heritage Images via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The coronavirus can infect anyone, <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/sns-nyt-coronavirus-deepens-inequality-worsens-spread-20200316-gbmmxqmnorfhzjbxmldaqgjcca-story.html">but during the pandemic</a> socioeconomic status played a big role, with a combination of job security, access to health care and mobility widening the gap in infection and mortality rates between rich and poor. </p>
<p>The wealthy <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/upshot/coronavirus-sick-days-service-workers.html">work remotely</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/25/nyregion/coronavirus-leaving-nyc-vacation-homes.html">flee to resorts or pastoral second homes</a>, while the urban poor <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/09/nyregion/coronavirus-queens-corona-jackson-heights-elmhurst.html">are packed into small apartments and compelled to keep showing up to work</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://english.umbc.edu/core-faculty/kathryn-mckinley/">As a medievalist</a>, I’ve seen a version of this story before.</p>
<p>Following the 1348 Black Death in Italy, the Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio wrote a collection of 100 novellas titled, “<a href="https://www.brown.edu/Departments/Italian_Studies/dweb/texts/">The Decameron</a>.” These stories, though fictional, give us a window into medieval life during the Black Death – and how some of the same fissures opened up between the rich and the poor. Cultural historians today see “The Decameron” as an invaluable source of information on everyday life in 14th-century Italy.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=732&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=732&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=732&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=920&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=920&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328162/original/file-20200415-153334-1d6aoe6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=920&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Giovanni Boccaccio.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/giovanni-boccaccio-italian-poet-anonymous-painter-ambras-news-photo/587489272?adppopup=true">Leemage via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Boccaccio <a href="https://www.brown.edu/Departments/Italian_Studies/dweb/boccaccio/life1_en.php">was born in 1313</a> as the illegitimate son of a Florentine banker. A product of the middle class, he wrote, in “The Decameron,” stories about merchants and servants. This was unusual for his time, as medieval literature tended to focus on the lives of the nobility.</p>
<p>“The Decameron” begins with a gripping, graphic description of the Black Death, which was so virulent that a person who contracted it would die <a href="https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Black_Death">within four to seven days</a>. Between 1347 and 1351, it killed <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4013036/">between 40% and 50%</a> of Europe’s population. Some of Boccaccio’s own family members died. </p>
<p>In this opening section, Boccaccio describes the rich secluding themselves at home, where they enjoy quality wines and provisions, music and other entertainment. The very wealthiest – whom Boccaccio describes as “ruthless” – deserted their neighborhoods altogether, retreating to comfortable estates in the countryside, “as though the plague was meant to harry only those remaining within their city walls.” </p>
<p>Meanwhile, the middle class or poor, forced to stay at home, “caught the plague by the thousand right there in their own neighborhood, day after day” and swiftly passed away. Servants dutifully attended to the sick in wealthy households, often succumbing to the illness themselves. Many, unable to leave Florence and convinced of their imminent death, decided to simply drink and party away their final days in nihilistic revelries, while in rural areas, laborers died “like brute beasts rather than human beings; night and day, with never a doctor to attend them.” </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1125&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1125&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328168/original/file-20200415-153357-16yyd0t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1125&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Josse Lieferinxe’s ‘Saint Sebastian Interceding for the Plague Stricken’ (c. 1498).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Josse_Lieferinxe_-_Saint_Sebastian_Interceding_for_the_Plague_Stricken_-_Walters_371995.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
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<p>After the bleak description of the plague, Boccaccio shifts to the 100 stories. They’re narrated by 10 nobles who have fled the pallor of death hanging over Florence to luxuriate in amply stocked country mansions. From there, they tell their tales.</p>
<p>One key issue in “The Decameron” is how wealth and advantage can impair people’s abilities to empathize with the hardships of others. Boccaccio begins the forward with the proverb, “It is inherently human to show pity to those who are afflicted.” Yet in many of the tales he goes on to present characters who are sharply indifferent to the pain of others, blinded by their own drives and ambition.</p>
<p>In one fantasy story, a dead man returns from hell every Friday and ritually slaughters the same woman who had rejected him when he was alive. In another, a widow fends off a leering priest by tricking him into sleeping with her maid. In a third, the narrator praises a character for his undying loyalty to his friend when, in fact, he has profoundly betrayed that friend over many years. </p>
<p>Humans, Boccaccio seems to be saying, can think of themselves as upstanding and moral – but unawares, they may show indifference to others. We see this in the 10 storytellers themselves: They make a pact to live virtuously in their well-appointed retreats. Yet while they pamper themselves, they indulge in some stories that illustrate brutality, betrayal and exploitation.</p>
<p>Boccaccio wanted to challenge his readers, and make them think about their responsibilities to others. “The Decameron” raises the questions: How do the rich relate to the poor during times of widespread suffering? What is the value of a life?</p>
<p>In our own pandemic, with millions who became unemployed due to a virus that killed hundreds of thousands, these issues are strikingly relevant.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of an article originally published on April 16, 2020.</em></p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135925/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kathryn McKinley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Then – as now – the wealthy fled to the countryside, while the urban poor were forced to work on the front lines.Kathryn McKinley, Professor of English, University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1337742020-03-31T12:17:28Z2020-03-31T12:17:28ZAbused children and partners, people with mental illness are all especially vulnerable with stay-at-home orders from coronavirus<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324088/original/file-20200330-146724-18m7nzw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=23%2C100%2C5152%2C3344&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The nonprofit International Community Health Services medical clinic in Seattle provides care for uninsured people. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/bing-hong-liu-talks-to-to-dr-alan-chun-through-an-news-photo/1207855461?adppopup=true">Photo by Karen Ducey/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>How is the COVID-19 crisis impacting the most vulnerable among us? </p>
<p>Tens of millions of Americans fit that description – the <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2020/03/16/for-millions-of-low-income-seniors-coronavirus-is-a-food-security-issue/">poor</a>, the <a href="https://endhomelessness.org/covid-19-what-state-and-local-leaders-can-do-for-homeless-populations/">homeless</a>, <a href="https://www.vox.com/identities/2020/3/13/21173897/coronavirus-low-income-immigrants">immigrants</a>, the <a href="https://www.voanews.com/usa/immigration/covid-19-us-migrant-detention-sites-just-matter-time">detained</a> and <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/how-coronavirus-could-affect-us-jails-and-prisons">incarcerated</a>, the <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/ajimpact/coronavirus-highlights-lack-safety-net-gig-workers-200312212901655.html">precariously employed</a> and the <a href="https://www.kff.org/uninsured/fact-sheet/what-issues-will-uninsured-people-face-with-testing-and-treatment-for-covid-19/">uninsured</a>. Nearly one-quarter of adult Americans <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/03/12/as-coronavirus-spreads-which-u-s-workers-have-paid-sick-leave-and-which-dont/">do not have access</a> to medical benefits, paid sick leave or access to medical care.</p>
<p>Already, the virus has revealed the faults, cracks and inequities in the U.S. health care system. As scholars in <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=5Ng_AhgAAAAJ&hl=en">humanitarian</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=X93iXJAAAAAJ&hl=en">aid</a>, we’re keenly attuned to these inequities. Here’s a look at the challenges the U.S. faces to protect the health of everyone in our communities.</p>
<h2>1. Mental health</h2>
<p>Approximately 20% of U.S. adults have a <a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness.shtml">mental health condition</a>. More than 4 million endure <a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness.shtml">serious mental illness</a>. COVID-19 has the potential to make things much worse; <a href="https://www.webmd.com/depression/features/depression-traps-and-pitfalls#1">isolation</a> exacerbates depression and anxiety. Those with mental health issues who are self-isolating may find it difficult to get proper medication and therapy. As a result, some may turn to alcohol or drugs to self-medicate. Not only does this hurt the individual, it greatly increases the risk of violence in the home. </p>
<h2>2. Domestic violence</h2>
<p>Intimate partner violence, pervasive in the U.S., touches <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/datasources/nisvs/summaryreports.html">1 in 4 women</a> and <a href="http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/ndv0312.pdf">1 in 9 men</a>. <a href="https://www.odi.org/sites/odi.org.uk/files/resource-documents/11113.pdf">Studies suggest</a> that a crisis only increases its incidence and severity. Often, the increases last well <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19293740">beyond the crisis</a>. In China, <a href="https://www.economist.com/china/2020/03/07/covid-19-has-revealed-widespread-sexism-in-china">there’s evidence</a> that intimate partner violence went up when COVID-19 forced people to stay at home. </p>
<p>Then there’s an added risk factor: guns. COVID-19 brought with it a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/16/us-sales-guns-ammunition-soar-amid-coronavirus-panic-buying?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Messenger">jump</a> in the number of gun purchases. Studies show gun ownership is a <a href="https://everytownresearch.org/reports/guns-intimate-partner-violence/">key factor</a> in deadly domestic violence; the risk of homicide goes up 500%. On average, 600 women are <a href="https://lawcenter.giffords.org/facts/gun-violence-statistics/">shot to death</a> by a partner each year, and gun-related domestic killings rose more than a quarter between 2010-2017, a significant increase after four decades of decline. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322724/original/file-20200324-155658-1qqpmr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">School closings, though necessary, can create problems for families.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/students-and-parents-walk-by-the-entrance-to-the-blackstone-news-photo/1207377070?adppopup=true">Getty Images / Boston Globe</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. Child abuse</h2>
<p>In the U.S., up to 4 million children receive services for <a href="https://www.acf.hhs.gov/media/press/2019/child-abuse-neglect-data-released">child abuse</a> every year. Every day, five children die from abuse and neglect. Social isolation, economic fallout, closing schools and the stress resulting from families constantly in close quarters puts them at even higher risk. And with more guns in homes, the number of children killed by firearms will likely go up. It’s already the <a href="https://www.thetrace.org/2019/08/children-teens-gun-deaths-data/">second-leading cause</a> of death for them. </p>
<p>There are also millions of low-income children that face school closures. Many of them are without home computers, so unlike most of their classmates, they can’t do the online assignments. Other children, enrolled in Individualized Education Programs, are also often <a href="https://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/virtual-schools-annual-2019">left behind</a>, both in online and home-school scenarios. </p>
<h2>4. Pregnant women</h2>
<p>When emergencies occur, the needs of <a href="https://theconversation.com/pregnant-in-a-time-of-coronavirus-the-changing-risks-and-what-you-need-to-know-134745">pregnant women suffer</a>. Call it the “tyranny of the urgent,” and it is not a uniquely American problem. During the COVID-19 outbreak in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/25/business/coronavirus-china-pregnant.html">China</a>, and the earlier Ebola pandemic in <a href="https://www.rescue.org/report/not-all-bleeds-ebola-how-drc-outbreak-impacts-reproductive-health">Africa</a>, maternity care sometimes ceased altogether. In other cases, pregnant women were moved out to make room for pandemic patients. </p>
<p>In the U.S., as hospital resources are diverted, women who miscarry in early pregnancy may face delays, even for emergency procedures, with Black and Native American women <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2019/p0905-racial-ethnic-disparities-pregnancy-deaths.html">particularly at risk</a>. The U.S. already has the <a href="https://www.npr.org/2017/05/12/528098789/u-s-has-the-worst-rate-of-maternal-deaths-in-the-developed-world">highest maternal mortality rate</a> of any high-income country in the world. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322726/original/file-20200324-155640-1petocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">With the coronavirus, hospitals may struggle to provide ongoing services for other patients.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/doctors-test-hospital-staff-with-flu-like-symptoms-for-news-photo/1214527865?adppopup=true">Getty Images / Misha Friedman</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What can people do?</h2>
<p>People can work within their communities to <a href="https://www.who.int/influenza/preparedness/pandemic/2009-0808_wos_pandemic_readiness_final.pdf">identify needs</a>. That includes, along with our neighborhoods, our virtual, religious and professional communities. One approach that’s working in remote African communities – called <a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8e17/89748014328824ad12a45f60f34137b88944.pdf?_ga=2.10976370.733073779.1584541670-135516429.1584541670">Champion Communities</a> – targets the needs of the most vulnerable. The program can be adapted in the U.S. to provide online tools (like Google forms) to collect information on needs and resources. Social media –like <a href="https://newdream.org/blog/top-10-neighborhood-platforms-for-connecting-and-collaborating">neighborhood-focused apps</a>, messaging groups on text, WhatsApp and FB Messenger – can also be used to check on the most vulnerable; #ittakesavillage is being used on social media to highlight these efforts.</p>
<p>And a footnote: Every telemedicine call should screen for intimate partner violence and child abuse. Every call needs to record the presence of firearms in the house. Providers, in cooperation with intimate partner violence and child abuse help lines, need to come up with protocols for identifying and safely checking in on those at risk. During this crisis, the coronavirus is not the only thing we have to fear.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133774/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Different groups in society can suffer from social distancing practices. That includes higher risk of domestic violence, child abuse and mental health problems.Chen Reis, Associate Clinical Professor and Director, Humanitarian Assistance Program, University of DenverLynn Lieberman Lawry, Associate Professor of Preventive Medicine and Biostatistics, Uniformed Services University of the Health SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1316252020-02-14T13:45:10Z2020-02-14T13:45:10ZAI algorithms intended to root out welfare fraud often end up punishing the poor instead<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315449/original/file-20200214-10991-1w81qo2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=38%2C0%2C4997%2C1433&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Automated algorithms – not humans – are increasingly making decisions about who's eligible for welfare benefits.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">gorodenkoff/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2020-02-10/trump-says-budget-proposal-seeks-to-cut-waste-and-fraud-video">recently suggested</a> there is “tremendous fraud” in government welfare programs. </p>
<p>Although there’s very little evidence to back up his claim, he’s hardly the first politician – <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/public-sector/fraud-waste-and-abuse-in-entitlement-programs-benefits-fraud.html">conservative or liberal</a> – to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/10/business/president-trump-budget-cuts.html">vow to crack down</a> on fraud and waste in America’s social safety net. </p>
<p>States – which are charged with distributing and overseeing many federally funded benefits – are taking these <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/9/4/20835692/conservative-think-tank-foundation-for-government-accountability-food-stamps-snap-poverty-welfare">fraud accusations</a> seriously. They are <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2017/05/24/what-happens-when-states-go-hunting-for-welfare-fraud">increasingly turning to artificial intelligence and other automated systems</a> to determine benefits eligibility and ferret out fraud in a variety of benefits programs, from <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-19-115#summary">food stamps</a> and <a href="https://www.ncsl.org/research/health/fighting-medicaid-fraud-sl-magazine.aspxto%20determine%20eligibility%20and%20detect%20fraud">Medicaid</a> to <a href="https://www.govtech.com/data/Aiming-Analytics-at-Our-35-Billion-Unemployment-Insurance-Problem.html">unemployment insurance</a>. </p>
<p>Of course, government agencies should ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent effectively. The problem is these automated decision-making systems <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2017/05/24/what-happens-when-states-go-hunting-for-welfare-fraud">are sometimes rife with errors</a> and designed in ways that punish the poor for being poor, leading to <a href="https://slate.com/human-interest/2018/03/automating-inequality-author-virginia-eubanks-on-how-algorithms-can-punish-the-poor.html">tragic results</a>. </p>
<p>As a <a href="https://law.ubalt.edu/faculty/profiles/gilman/">clinical law professor</a> who has researched safety net programs and has represented low-income clients in public benefits cases for over 20 years, I believe it’s essential these systems are designed in ways that are fair, transparent and accountable to prevent hurting society’s most vulnerable. </p>
<h2>Facts about fraud</h2>
<p>First, it’s important to make one thing clear: The evidence suggests incidents of user fraud in government welfare programs are rare. </p>
<p>For instance, the food stamp program, formally called the <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program">Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program</a>, currently <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/policy-basics-the-supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap">serves about 40 million people</a> monthly at an annual cost of US$68 billion. Despite regular <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/01/04/when-it-comes-hungry-americans-weve-lost-our-heart/">denigration</a> of food stamp recipients, <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/integrity/fraud-FNS-fighting">less than 1%</a> of benefits go to ineligible households, according to the federal government. </p>
<p>And, of those families, the majority of overpayments <a href="https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R45147.pdf">result from mistakes</a> by recipients, state workers or computer programmers as they navigate complex regulatory requirements – not any intent to defraud the system.</p>
<p>As for Medicaid, which provides health insurance for low-income people, <a href="https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/10-things-to-know-about-medicaid-setting-the-facts-straight/">research has shown</a> that the bulk of fraudulent activity is <a href="https://scholarship.shu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1610&context=shlr">committed by health care providers</a> – not by the <a href="https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/program-information/medicaid-and-chip-enrollment-data/report-highlights/index.html">64 million</a> needy people that use the program.</p>
<p>Within unemployment insurance, the “improper payment” rate for 2019 <a href="https://www.dol.gov/general/maps">is 10.6%</a>, which includes payments that should not
have been made or that were made in an incorrect amount, but intentional <a href="https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/pdf/UI_Improper_PaymentRates.pdf">fraud</a> estimates are much lower. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315331/original/file-20200213-11044-9erngu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">There’s little evidence of fraud in the food stamps program.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Spencer Platt/Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>When algorithms fail</h2>
<p>Nonetheless, many states seem to be adopting systems that assume criminal intent on the part of the needy. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-19-115#summary">Many states have begun using</a> “sophisticated data mining” techniques to identify fraud in the food stamp program, according to the General Accountability Office. Another <a href="https://www.govtech.com/data/Aiming-Analytics-at-Our-35-Billion-Unemployment-Insurance-Problem.html">report</a> identified 20 states using AI tools in unemployment insurance. And the <a href="https://www.medicaid.gov/about-us/messages/?entry=47649">federal government</a> is providing support to state Medicaid programs to <a href="https://www.ncsl.org/research/health/fighting-medicaid-fraud-sl-magazine.aspx">upgrade</a> their decades-old technology with <a href="https://rtcom.umn.edu/database/state-hcbs-assessment-tools/search?page=10">more advanced software</a>. </p>
<p>These types of <a href="https://ainowinstitute.org/aap-toolkit.pdf">automated decision-making systems</a> rely on algorithms, or mathematical instructions. Some algorithms use machine learning – a form of artificial intelligence – to replace decisions that would otherwise be made by humans. They analyze large sets of data to recognize patterns or make predictions. </p>
<p>But officials should approach these systems with caution. The results for low-income families with little margin for error <a href="https://slate.com/human-interest/2018/03/automating-inequality-author-virginia-eubanks-on-how-algorithms-can-punish-the-poor.html">can be disastrous</a>. </p>
<p>For instance, in Michigan, a $47 million automated fraud detection system adopted in 2013 made roughly 48,000 fraud accusations against unemployment insurance recipients – a <a href="https://spectrum.ieee.org/riskfactor/computing/software/michigans-midas-unemployment-system-algorithm-alchemy-that-created-lead-not-gold">five-fold increase</a> from the prior system. <a href="https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2015/10/05/uia-lawsuit-shows-how-the-state-criminalizes-the-unemployed">Without any human intervention</a>, the state demanded repayments plus interest and civil penalties of four times the alleged amount owed.</p>
<p>To collect the repayments – <a href="https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca6/18-1296/18-1296-2019-01-03.html%22%22">some as high as $187,000</a> – the state garnished wages, levied bank accounts and intercepted tax refunds. The financial stress on the accused <a href="https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/criminalizing-the-unemployed/Content?oid=2353533&storyPage=2">resulted in evictions</a>, divorces, destroyed credit scores, homelessness, <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2019/12/22/government-artificial-intelligence-midas-computer-fraud-fiasco/4407901002/">bankruptcies</a> and even suicide. </p>
<p>As it turns out, a state review later determined that <a href="https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca6/18-1296/18-1296-2019-01-03.html/">93% of the fraud determinations were wrong</a>. </p>
<p>How could a computer system fail so badly? The computer was programmed to detect fraud when claimants’ information conflicted with other federal, state and employer records. However, it did not distinguish between fraud and innocent mistakes, it was fed incomplete data, and the computer-generated notices were designed to make people inadvertently admit to fraud. </p>
<p>Michigan is not an outlier. Program-wide algorithmic errors have similarly plagued Medicaid eligibility determinations in states such as <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2018/02/19/586387119/automating-inequality-algorithms-in-public-services-often-fail-the-most-vulnerab">Indiana</a>, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/21/17144260/healthcare-medicaid-algorithm-arkansas-cerebral-palsy">Arkansas</a>, <a href="https://www.aclu.org/blog/privacy-technology/pitfalls-artificial-intelligence-decisionmaking-highlighted-idaho-aclu-case">Idaho</a> and <a href="https://www.portlandoregon.gov/civic/article/635472">Oregon</a>.</p>
<p>And the issue isn’t just an American one. Many countries such as <a href="https://logicmag.io/justice/austerity-is-an-algorithm">Australia</a> and the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/oct/17/benefits-of-welfare-robots-and-the-need-for-human-oversight">U.K.</a> are embracing these types of systems and encountering similar problems. The United Nations special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=25156">issued a report</a> in October that warned governments across the world to “avoid stumbling zombie-like into a digital welfare dystopia” as they automate their social welfare systems. </p>
<p>In a closely watched decision, a court in the Netherlands <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/feb/05/welfare-surveillance-system-violates-human-rights-dutch-court-rules">recently halted a welfare fraud detection system</a>, ruling that it violates human rights. The decision is likely to bring closer scrutiny to these systems worldwide, although Americans <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/europe-limits-government-algorithm-us-not-much">have fewer legal protections</a> than their European counterparts. </p>
<h2>Algorithms aren’t magic</h2>
<p>AI won’t magically root out what little fraud there is from the welfare rolls. </p>
<p>Mistakes can happen when software <a href="https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1166&context=law_lawreview">developers translate</a> complex regulatory requirements into code and when they make programming errors. The massive sets of data fed into automated systems inevitably will contain some inaccuracies and omissions. And algorithms can also replicate embedded societal <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/algorithmic-bias-detection-and-mitigation-best-practices-and-policies-to-reduce-consumer-harms/">biases</a> and end up discriminating against marginalized groups.</p>
<p>Without a human in the decision-making loop, these mistakes become compounded as they flow through multiple data-sharing systems.</p>
<p>To avoid these problems, state and other governments should ensure the systems they install are <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2017/02/08/theme-7-the-need-grows-for-algorithmic-literacy-transparency-and-oversight/">transparent</a> in how they function, are <a href="https://www.acm.org/binaries/content/assets/public-policy/2017_usacm_statement_algorithms.pdf">accountable</a> for mistakes and <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2017/05/24/what-happens-when-states-go-hunting-for-welfare-fraud">don’t incentivize</a> private contractors hired to design them to kick people off the rolls to make more money. States should also make sure representatives from all groups affected are involved in their creation and monitoring. </p>
<p>In my research and legal work, I have found automated fraud detection is too often built on the assumptions that computers are magic and fraud among the poor is endemic. State officials should flip those assumptions and make computers work for the people rather than against them.</p>
<p>[<em>You’re too busy to read everything. We get it. That’s why we’ve got a weekly newsletter.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklybusy">Sign up for good Sunday reading.</a> ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/131625/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Professor Gilman's law clinic has represented individuals affected by automated decision making in public benefits programs.</span></em></p>States are increasingly turning to machine learning and algorithms to detect fraud in food stamps, Medicaid and other welfare programs – despite little evidence of actual fraud.Michele Gilman, Venable Professor of Law, University of BaltimoreLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1317432020-02-13T22:42:13Z2020-02-13T22:42:13ZExpanding the definition of family to reflect our realities<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/316238/original/file-20200219-11017-e3nic0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=240%2C444%2C2785%2C1551&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A narrow definition of family can neglect the experiences of single-parent families.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The second Monday in February is Family Day in parts of Canada. <a href="https://open.alberta.ca/publications/f04">Started in Alberta in 1990</a>, four additional provinces celebrate Family Day: British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Ontario and New Brunswick. (Other provinces have holidays reflecting their heritage.) </p>
<p>Québec is one of few jurisdictions that does not have a civic holiday in February, though <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-one-province-got-80-per-cent-of-fathers-to-take-paternity-leave-118737">the province has generous family leave policies</a>. </p>
<p>This year, to coincide with the emphasis on family, <a href="http://www.concordia.ca">Concordia University</a> and the <a href="https://vanierinstitute.ca">Vanier Institute of the Family</a> are hosting a <a href="https://vanierinstitute.ca/concordia-university-to-host-families-in-canada-satellite-event-february-20-2020/">conference</a> on families and family life on Feb. 20. The conference will explore some of the tensions and dichotomies embedded in families. For one, how do we define what family means? </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=81%2C191%2C4714%2C3061&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/315121/original/file-20200212-61947-1you67c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">People take to the Rideau Canal on Family Day in Ottawa on Feb. 18, 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Expanding the definition of family</h2>
<p>How we define family (and who gets to do that defining) is an important starting point for conversations on family life. Who’s in? Who’s out? Who actually counts as family? For some, family means married parents with children, or married heterosexual parents with children. For others, it may mean a chosen family, or a cohabiting couple with no children.</p>
<p>For our conference, we are using an adaptation of the <a href="https://vanierinstitute.ca/family-definition-diversity/">Vanier Institute’s definition</a>: a family consists of any combination of two or more people, bound together over time, by ties of mutual consent and/or birth, adoption or placement, and who take responsibility for various activities of daily living, including love.</p>
<p>Our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01490400.2017.1333055">research has identified the need to attend to extended families</a>, including grandparents, aunts and uncles. It also includes the need to extend the definition of family to non-traditional family forms including LGBTQ2S+ families, chosen families, multi-generation families that include grandparents, single parents and people living alone. </p>
<p>It wasn’t until 2001 that Statistics Canada gathered information on multi-generational households, and in 2011 the census first counted stepfamilies and foster children. Families in Canada <a href="https://vanierinstitute.ca/resources/statistical-snapshots/">are diverse</a> and our programs and policies should be responsive to this diversity.</p>
<p>We find that a narrow definition of family can neglect the experiences of <a href="http://demeterpress.org/books/intensive-mothering-the-cultural-contradictions-of-modern-motherhood/">single-parent, poor and minority families</a>. For example, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243211427700">research shows</a> that women of colour and low-income women often experience and interpret motherhood differently than white, class-privileged mothers. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/316242/original/file-20200219-11005-x0029j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This image includes four adults and three children: many factors, including race and class impact family relationships.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Gift Habeshaw /Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Recently, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01634372.2010.516804">researchers</a> began to examine how diversity related to race, class and sexual orientation affects grandparent-grandchild relationships. To continue to expand our understanding of families’ experiences, we need to think more broadly about what factors matter in families. </p>
<h2>Family realities should be reflected in policy</h2>
<p>How we define family impacts social policy like <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/ei/ei-maternity-parental.html">parental, maternity and paternity leave entitlements</a> and <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/child-family-benefits/canada-child-benefit-overview.html">child-care tax credits</a>. <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/ei/caregiving.html">Caregiver benefits and compassionate leave policies are also tied to family status</a>. Eligibility depends on whether you are a family member. </p>
<p>In health-care contexts, visitors in intensive care units and emergency departments are often restricted to immediate family and grandparents often don’t have rights when it comes to child custody cases. So a comprehensive definition of family influences how we develop programs for families and who is eligible. </p>
<p>Besides needing to expand the definition of family, we also need to look at the messy realities of family and family life. The irony of organizing a public family conference while attending to the realities of our private family lives was not lost on us. As we scheduled meetings and conference calls, we were also planning Skype dates, making school lunches and caring for parents across the country.</p>
<p>We believe that practitioners, service providers and policy-makers need to take into account the complexity of family lives when thinking about family practice, programs and policies. Family scholars and the Vanier Institute of the Family refer to using a family lens: needing to look at the complexity of family and family relations beyond individual family members.</p>
<p>Thinking about families in a broad sense when we develop programs and policies can be challenging. It is much easier to use an individual lens to think about developing children, or aging seniors. But these individual family members, even those who live on their own, live out their lives in the context of families —whether biological or social. </p>
<h2>The future of families</h2>
<p>When using a family lens, it can be easy to slip into a glass-half-empty approach. Family life educators and social workers struggle with the tension between deficit models of family, and asset or strength-based models of family. Instead of only focusing on what problems families experience, we can benefit from understanding what strengths they have and what makes them resilient in the face of life’s challenges. </p>
<p>Some family practitioners and family scholars would say that in the best of all possible worlds, it would be preferable to remain apolitical as we think about family and as we provide information and assistance to families. </p>
<p>And yet, some of us feel strongly that it is important to look beyond families to society to advocate on behalf of families, or family members, who are at risk. </p>
<p>At our families conference we will be exploring the tension between present and future. Based on our understanding of systems and systemic change, we will emphasize envisioning a different future by including all families — in the broadest sense. </p>
<p>Rather than staying focused on the present, we look towards a future of change by asking the question: “Wouldn’t it be great if …?”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/131743/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Shannon Hebblethwaite receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the Fonds de Recherche du Québec - Société et Culture (FRQSC), the Fondation Luc Maurice, and TELUS Health.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hilary Rose does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A narrow definition of family can neglect the experiences of many people and can impact policy and programs. It’s time to expand our ideas of what family means.Hilary Rose, Associate Professor of Applied Human Sciences, Concordia UniversityShannon Hebblethwaite, Associate Professor of Applied Human Sciences, Concordia UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1162312019-04-30T10:43:26Z2019-04-30T10:43:26ZData insecurity leads to economic injustice – and hits the pocketbooks of the poor most<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271627/original/file-20190429-194609-1wo0c28.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Facebook allows advertisers to target low-income Americans. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Congress may finally be on the verge of passing a comprehensive federal privacy law after <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2019/02/28/congress-is-trying-to-create-a-federal-privacy-law">almost a half-century of trying</a>. Even the <a href="https://www.rollcall.com/news/congress/senate-commerce-chairman-eyes-data-privacy-bill-year">tech lobby</a> is <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/01/facebook-ceo-zuckerbergs-call-for-gdpr-privacy-laws-raises-questions.html">on board</a> following years of resistance. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.lawfareblog.com/will-new-congress-be-one-pass-data-privacy-legislation">growing bipartisan support</a> for privacy legislation seems to be responding to the public <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/techlash-whipping-up-criticism-of-the-top-tech-companies-11547146279">“techlash”</a> against a drumbeat of data breaches and social media misinformation campaigns. It also appears aimed at preventing a patchwork of state laws after <a href="https://iapp.org/news/a/gdpr-matchup-california-consumer-privacy-act">California passed its own privacy legislation</a> in 2018. </p>
<p>While the time is right to enact a new law, what you may not realize is that data privacy is actually an important economic justice issue. As a <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=623525">clinical law professor</a> representing low-income people for the last 20 years, I have seen how one’s digital privacy <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/25/opinion/privacy-poverty.html">experience varies</a> depending on social class. </p>
<p>And poorer Americans are among those who have the most at risk. </p>
<h2>Data targeting</h2>
<p>Take <a href="https://theconversation.com/your-smartphone-apps-are-tracking-your-every-move-4-essential-reads-108586">data brokers</a>, which are companies that sell personal data collected from <a href="https://theconversation.com/most-americans-dont-realize-what-companies-can-predict-from-their-data-110760">sources</a> such as public records, internet browsing activity, social media posts, emails, app usage and retail loyalty cards.</p>
<p>This industry is one reason why you are barraged with online ads for a product you may have glanced at only briefly. For most of us, this is simply an annoying fact of life. For low-income people, the harms extend beyond this shared sense of creepiness.</p>
<p>For example, the digital dossiers assembled by data brokers are used to <a href="https://bigdata.fairness.io/data-brokers/">target low-income Americans</a> for predatory products such as payday loans, high-interest mortgages and for-profit educational scams. These brokers <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-marketers-use-big-data-to-prey-on-the-poor-2013-12">segment consumers</a> into highly specific categories, such as “rural and barely making it” and “credit crunched: city families.”</p>
<p>While a slew of lawsuits <a href="https://www.vox.com/2019/3/21/18275746/facebook-settles-ad-discrimination-lawsuits">pushed Facebook</a> to stop allowing its advertisers to target groups based on gender, race, zip code and age, advertisers can continue to discriminate against people simply because they are poor. Poverty is <a href="http://virginialawreview.org/sites/virginialawreview.org/files/Evans_Online%20Revised.pdf">not a protected category</a> under our civil rights laws or the <a href="https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1547&context=lcp">Constitution</a>.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, police are using big data to predict criminal activity, particularly in low-income and minority neighborhoods. The problem is this <a href="https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/d3m7jq/dozens-of-cities-have-secretly-experimented-with-predictive-policing-software">creates a vicious cycle</a> in which communities that are already heavily policed <a href="https://www.economist.com/open-future/2018/06/04/how-data-driven-policing-threatens-human-freedom">trigger predictive software</a> that urges more aggressive policing. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271602/original/file-20190429-194603-3d3trj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Digital dossiers are used to target low-income Americans with high-interest payday loans.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Payday-Lending-Crackdown/1dfd87e7b6134dcb83cb70f63716bee8/150/0">AP Photo/Seth Perlman</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Data exclusion</h2>
<p>Targeting is not the only problem. Big data can also <a href="https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6265&context=law_lawreview">exclude people</a> living in material poverty from opportunities that would foster their economic stability.</p>
<p>Employers are using <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/3051182/the-bias-you-didnt-know-existed-in-job-ads-and-recruiting-software">applicant tracking systems</a> to predict whether potential employees will perform on the job. <a href="https://slate.com/business/2016/09/how-big-data-made-applying-to-college-tougher-crueler-and-more-expensive.html">Colleges</a> are assessing algorithms to determine which prospective students are likely to stick around for graduation. <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/1/18205174/automation-background-check-criminal-records-corelogic">Landlords</a> are scouring credit reports to predict whether prospective tenants will pay the rent. </p>
<p>And while these can be legitimate objectives, society <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/12/fixing-discrimination-in-online-marketplaces">puts too much faith</a> in the algorithms used to predict human behavior. Computer outputs may have the veneer of objectivity, but human beings <a href="https://medium.com/mit-media-lab/the-algorithms-arent-biased-we-are-a691f5f6f6f2">impart their own conscious and implicit biases</a> into the software that fuels these predictions. This can <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/10/upshot/when-algorithms-discriminate.html">reinforce longstanding prejudices</a>. </p>
<p>In addition, much of the data fed into algorithms is <a href="https://theconversation.com/big-data-analyses-depend-on-starting-with-clean-data-points-43687">erroneous</a>. Since these algorithms <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2930247">increasingly include information</a> pulled from social networks, you could be judged on the posts and conduct of your “friends.”</p>
<p>A <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2015/01/black-box-society-by-frank-pasquale-a-chilling-vision-of-how-big-data-has-invaded-our-lives.html">lack of transparency</a> means that people never learn why they are denied a job, a home or an education. Mechanisms to correct faulty data either do not exist or are so <a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/144780/break-credit-reporting-racket">Kafkaesque</a> that people give up in frustration.</p>
<p>Not surprisingly, then, in states that rely on algorithms to assess eligibility for public benefits such as Medicaid, thousands of qualified people have been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/13/we-created-poverty-algorithms-wont-make-that-go-away">kicked out of programs</a>, imperiling their health and costing lives. </p>
<p>Automated decision-making strips social service delivery of needed nuance.</p>
<h2>Data security</h2>
<p>Data security is another area of concern for low-income Americans.</p>
<p>Recently, researchers <a href="http://fortune.com/2019/04/29/security-gap-personal-information-breach/">found a database online</a> containing identifying information on 80 million American households. This <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/12/28/data-breaches-2018-billions-hit-growing-number-cyberattacks/2413411002/">follows years of data breaches</a> that have put everyone’s data at risk of identity theft. </p>
<p>While always a nightmare, such breaches can be <a href="https://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_services/publications/dialogue/volume/17/winter-2014/identity-theft--a-lowincome-issue/">especially devastating</a> for people living on the financial edge. They generally can’t afford the costly and complicated measures needed to clean their credit after someone else steals their identity. Economic losses resulting from a breach can push low-income people over a financial cliff.</p>
<p>Furthermore, identity theft <a href="https://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_services/publications/dialogue/volume/17/winter-2014/identity-theft--a-lowincome-issue">can result</a> in low-income people facing wrongful arrests or utility cut-offs or aggressive debt collection tactics. Unsurprisingly, low-income <a href="https://datasociety.net/output/privacy-security-and-digital-inequality">people report lower confidence</a> in their ability to protect their data. </p>
<h2>Data privacy gaps</h2>
<p>All these harms are in part because the U.S. still lacks an overarching privacy law. </p>
<p>Although <a href="http://www.ncsl.org/research/telecommunications-and-information-technology/2018-security-breach-legislation.aspx">all 50 states now require companies</a> to notify consumers about data breaches, California is the only state to pass a comprehensive privacy law governing how data is collected and used. However, multiple states <a href="https://iapp.org/news/a/us-state-comprehensive-privacy-law-comparison/">are considering similar legislation</a>. </p>
<p>There are a few federal <a href="https://teachprivacy.com/problems-sectoral-approach-privacy-law/">sectoral laws</a> that protect certain pieces of Americans’ financial and health information. But mostly a <a href="https://theconversation.com/74-screens-of-legalese-dont-protect-your-data-heres-a-blueprint-for-new-laws-that-could-make-a-difference-115101">notice and consent regime</a> puts the onus on individuals to safeguard their own online privacy.</p>
<p>Do you actually <a href="https://theconversation.com/nobody-reads-privacy-policies-heres-how-to-fix-that-81932">read those lengthy notices</a> that flash before you when you log on to a new website? Companies <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/09/why-privacy-policies-are-so-inscrutable/379615/">count on the fact</a> that you probably do not. </p>
<p>For its part, the <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/how-a-grad-student-scooped-the-ftc-and-what-it-means-for-your-online-privac">overburdened</a> Federal Trade Commission has tried to push companies to improve their data security. But its resources and enforcement power <a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/privacy-and-data-security/new-ftc-powers-weighed-in-senate-data-privacy-hearing-1">are limited</a> under current law. </p>
<h2>Lessons from Europe</h2>
<p>Lawmakers working on a federal privacy law should look to Europe for inspiration. </p>
<p>About a year ago, the European Union began implementing the General Data Protection Regulation, which gives its citizens a bevy of <a href="https://gdpr-info.eu/chapter-3/">rights to control their data</a>. In particular, it also includes provisions that could enhance the data privacy needs of low-income people.</p>
<p>For instance, the GDPR prohibits certain kinds of <a href="https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=3265eea7-5948-4aa7-a066-bf9b6f7bfb8a">automated profiling</a>. This could put the brakes on profiling that limits people’s access to jobs, housing and other life necessities for illegitimate reasons. The law also gives people a <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3196985">right to an explanation</a> about automated decision-making, which could open the current “black box” to help people understand and challenge denials of goods and services.</p>
<p>The law includes a <a href="https://gdpr-info.eu/issues/right-to-be-forgotten/">right to be forgotten</a>, which requires personal data must be erased when it’s no longer needed for the original purpose or when a person asks for it to be scrubbed. Fundamentally, it means people can get a clean data slate as their financial condition improves. </p>
<p>And to top it off, the law has a meaningful <a href="https://www.gdpreu.org/compliance/fines-and-penalties/">enforcement regime</a> and requires <a href="https://gdpr-info.eu/art-35-gdpr/">public participation</a> in the data policies set by large companies.</p>
<p>In the United States, I believe the time is right to adopt similar provisions to enhance Americans’ control over their personal data. Data privacy is an issue of economic justice, and Congress should legislate accordingly.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/116231/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michele Gilman is affiliated with the Women's Law Center of Maryland and the ACLU of Maryland.</span></em></p>The drumbeat of data breaches and the growing problem of identity theft disproportionately harm low-income Americans.Michele Gilman, Venable Professor of Law, University of BaltimoreLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1117202019-03-05T11:37:11Z2019-03-05T11:37:11ZAmerica’s schools are crumbling – what will it take to fix them?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261679/original/file-20190301-110110-10ewb34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Baltimore schools were shut down temporarily in January 2018 after heating units failed during bitterly cold weather.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Winter-Weather-Cold-Schools/9ec06830e6a547cd88ecf1d179ff702f/2/0">Patrick Semansky/AP</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When I was asked to support a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/do-children-have-a-right-to-literacy-attorneys-are-testing-that-question/2018/08/13/926d0016-9042-11e8-8322-b5482bf5e0f5_story.html?utm_term=.bd9eaee9d7e1">federal lawsuit</a> that says Detroit’s deteriorating schools were having a negative impact on students’ ability to learn, the decision was a no-brainer.</p>
<p>Detroit’s schools are so old and raggedy that last year the city’s schools chief, Nikolai Vitti, <a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/08/30/643247780/detroits-public-school-district-shuts-off-drinking-water-citing-lead-copper-risk">ordered the water shut off</a> across the district due to lead and copper risks from <a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/08/30/643247780/detroits-public-school-district-shuts-off-drinking-water-citing-lead-copper-risk">antiquated plumbing</a>. By mid-September, elevated levels of copper and lead were <a href="https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/elevated-copper-lead-levels-found-in-57-of-86-detroit-public-schools-tested">confirmed in 57 of 86 schools tested</a>.</p>
<p>Safe water isn’t the only problem in Detroit schools. A 2018 assessment found that it would <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/education/2018/06/22/price-tag-fix-dpscd-buildings-500-million/726186002/">cost about US$500 million</a> to bring Detroit’s schools into a state of repair – a figure that could grow to $1.4 billion if the school district waits another five years to address the problems. A school board official concluded that the district would have to <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/education/2018/06/22/price-tag-fix-dpscd-buildings-500-million/726186002/">“pick and choose”</a> which repairs to make because there isn’t enough money to make them all.</p>
<p>Even though a federal judge tossed out the lawsuit that I supported, the judge recognized how the deteriorating state of Detroit’s schools impact student learning. The central argument of the lawsuit is that children have a constitutional <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/do-children-have-a-right-to-literacy-attorneys-are-testing-that-question/2018/08/13/926d0016-9042-11e8-8322-b5482bf5e0f5_story.html?utm_term=.b7e5fa8ef912">right to literacy,</a> and that the state was violating that right by failing to provide enough resources for Detroit’s school system.</p>
<p>“The conditions and outcomes of Plaintiffs’ schools, as alleged, are nothing short of devastating,” U.S. District Court Judge
Stephen J. Murphy III <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mied.314083/gov.uscourts.mied.314083.112.0.pdf">wrote</a>. “When a child who could be taught to read goes untaught, the child suffers a lasting injury – and so does society.”</p>
<p>But Judge Murphy found that the “deplorable and unsafe conditions” that deny children access to literacy were not shown to stem from “irrational” decisions of the State. The case has been appealed to the U.S. 6th Circuit.</p>
<h2>A nationwide problem</h2>
<p>Detroit’s dilemma is not unique. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=660&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=660&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=660&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261682/original/file-20190301-110119-w7rzy5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Water coolers were brought in to dozens of Detroit public schools in 2018 after the discovery of elevated levels of lead or copper in school drinking fountains.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Detroit-Schools-Water/6c5e0874cc224b0ea581e80cc57be534/11/0">Paul Sancya/AP</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Before I became a professor of educational leadership and policy, I <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=WA3k8iWeYxgC&pg=PA275&lpg=PA275&dq=assistant+state+superintendent+for+research+and+policy+in+the+Michigan+Department+of+Education+addonizio&source=bl&ots=W-9A-ZhNfN&sig=ACfU3U2I07PP0QOUSdS3apVT8ZEZf1lheA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjIr6jg_9zgAhWRGt8KHZuYD6EQ6AEwAXoECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=assistant%20state%20superintendent%20for%20research%20and%20policy%20in%20the%20Michigan%20Department%20of%20Education%20addonizio&f=false">served as assistant state superintendent for research and policy</a> in the Michigan Department of Education. I know a thing or two about <a href="https://sites.psu.edu/ceepa/2015/06/07/the-importance-of-school-facilities-in-improving-student-outcomes/">how poor school facilities can have an effect on student learning</a>. One recent study, for instance, found that in schools without air conditioning, for every one Fahrenheit degree increase in school year temperature, the amount learned that year <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w24639">goes down by 1 percent</a>.</p>
<p>Crumbling schools can be found throughout the nation. These schools are disproportionately attended by low-income children of color. And it’s been that way for a while. For instance, a 1996 report by the General Accounting Office found that schools in “unsatisfactory physical and environmental condition” were “<a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/HEHS-96-103">concentrated in central cities</a> and serve large populations of poor or minority students.”</p>
<p>A 2014 Department of Education study found that <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014022.pdf">it would cost about $197 billion</a> to bring the nation’s deteriorating public schools into good condition.</p>
<p>The harshness of the conditions that have plagued the nation’s schools was captured in a case known as <a href="https://www.aclusocal.org/en/cases/williams-v-state-California">Williams v. California</a>, a class action lawsuit that the ACLU filed in 2000 on behalf of California’s low-income students of color.</p>
<p>“The school has no air conditioning. On hot days classroom temperatures climb into the 90s,” the lawsuit stated in reference to the grim conditions at Luther Burbank middle school in San Francisco. “The school heating system does not work well. In winter, children often wear coats, hats, and gloves during class to keep warm.”</p>
<p>A similar situation happened in Baltimore’s public schools in January 2018, when the city’s schools were closed <a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/01/03/575337312/outrage-as-some-baltimore-students-attend-school-in-frigid-classrooms">after parents and educators complained</a> that students were being exposed to frigid conditions that the local teachers union described as “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/04/us/baltimore-schools-winter-heating.html">inhumane</a>.”</p>
<p>A few years ago in the Yazoo County School District in Mississippi, <a href="https://hechingerreport.org/comes-student-achievement-facilities-matter/">the lights were so old</a> at the high school that maintenance workers couldn’t find replacement bulbs when the lights went out.</p>
<p>In Philadelphia, the head of the teachers union recently described the current state of the city’s schools as “<a href="https://www.philly.com/opinion/commentary/philadelphia-school-conditions-pft-20190124.html">untenable</a>.”</p>
<p>“From flaking lead paint, asbestos exposure, persistent rodent issues, the presence of mold, and even the lack of heat on bitterly cold days, educators and children in Philadelphia are learning and working in environmentally toxic facilities every day,” Jerry Jordan, president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, wrote in a January <a href="https://www.philly.com/opinion/commentary/philadelphia-school-conditions-pft-20190124.html">op-ed</a>.</p>
<h2>Costs and consequences</h2>
<p>Indeed, miserable conditions like these are not only hard on the children. They seriously impair school districts’ ability to retain their most valuable asset – their teachers. Teachers leave their jobs for a variety of reasons, but <a href="http://www.ncef.org/pubs/teacherretention.pdf">facility quality is a key factor</a>.</p>
<p>Addressing the infrastructure needs of America’s public schools will be costly. However, continuing to ignore them would be even more costly. The educational impact of substandard facilities on students cannot be overstated. For example, at one elementary school in the Detroit “right to literacy” case that I supported, <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/547980/the-schoolhouse-gate-by-justin-driver/9781101871652/">not a single sixth-grade student could read</a> at a minimally proficient level. Perhaps poor facilities can’t be blamed entirely for the low reading ability at this particular school – but those conditions are still a <a href="https://sites.psu.edu/ceepa/2015/06/07/the-importance-of-school-facilities-in-improving-student-outcomes/">potential factor</a>.</p>
<h2>Who should pay for it?</h2>
<p>Funding for public education, including school facilities, is primarily a state and local matter. But while most states have tried to help poor local districts with basic operating expenses – such as paying teachers and buying supplies and materials – state support for school infrastructure has been much <a href="http://hepg.org/hep-home/books/educational-inequality-and-school-finance">less reliable</a>.</p>
<p>Local districts vary widely – <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/02/26/696794821/why-white-school-districts-have-so-much-more-money">usually along lines of race</a> – in their ability to build or renovate schools. Property-poor districts, including most big city districts, are <a href="https://education.msu.edu/ed-policy-phd/pdf/Michigan-School-Finance-at-the-Crossroads-A-Quarter-Center-of-State-Control.pdf">left behind</a>.</p>
<p>Congress now has an opportunity to address this problem. The House has begun hearings on the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/865">Rebuild America’s School Act of 2019</a>. Introduced by U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott, a Democrat from Virginia, the bill would invest $100 billion over 10 years in fixing America’s public schools.</p>
<p>Even for people who aren’t convinced that federal money should be spent on fixing America’s schools, there are other factors to consider when weighing the merits of the bill. For instance, the bill would create nearly <a href="https://bobbyscott.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/house-and-senate-democrats-unveil-proposal-to-invest-more-than-100">1.9 million jobs</a>. This figure is based on an <a href="https://www.epi.org/publication/a-public-investment-agenda-that-delivers-the-goods-for-american-workers-needs-to-be-long-lived-broad-and-subject-to-democratic-oversight/">analysis</a> that found 17,785 jobs are created for each $1 billion spent on construction. The estimate factors in an overall $107 billion investment when state and local resources are taken into account.</p>
<p>The $100 billion investment would also <a href="https://academic.oup.com/qje/article-abstract/125/1/215/1880328?redirectedFrom=fulltext">stimulate property values</a> in communities where schools would be fixed. For all those reasons and more, passage of this bill should be a no-brainer.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/111720/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Addonizio does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Schools throughout America’s low-income communities have been deteriorating for years. Now’s the time to do something about it, an education scholar argues.Michael Addonizio, Professor of educational leadership and policy studies, Wayne State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1076042018-11-28T11:43:51Z2018-11-28T11:43:51ZHow the Salvation Army’s red kettles became a Christmas tradition<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247557/original/file-20181127-76752-1qd5p5t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Salvation Army is among the top few U.S. charities.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/55015963@N05/5162833707/">CityOfFortWorth</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Tinseled trees and snowy landscapes are not the only signs of the upcoming holiday season. Red kettles, staffed by men and women in street clothes, Santa suits and Salvation Army uniforms, also telegraph Christmastime. </p>
<p>The Salvation Army is among America’s top-grossing charities. In 2018, its 25,000 <a href="https://www.salvationarmyusa.org/usn/story/the-salvation-armys-2018-holiday-fundraising-season-raises-4337-million/">bell-ringers helped raise</a> US$142.7 million. That was part of the charity’s $3.8 billion year-end revenue from bequests, grants, sales, in-kind donations and investments as well as direct contributions.</p>
<p>William Booth, an English evangelist, <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/activists/william-booth.html">founded the Salvation Army</a> in 1878 as a religious outreach to London’s poor. How a British evangelical church became an American icon is an <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">ongoing interest</a> of mine. </p>
<h2>Entry into the United States</h2>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=842&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=842&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=842&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1058&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1058&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247609/original/file-20181127-76770-1yhn1zq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1058&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Associated-Press-Domestic-News-England-WILLIAM-BOOTH/918d8477b3e6da11af9f0014c2589dfb/1/0">AP Photo</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Booth, who called himself “The General,” fashioned his army on Britain’s military. From the start, his “soldiers” wore uniforms, and they described their mission in martial terms. Salvationists <a href="http://the-east-end.co.uk/">marched through the streets of London’s East End</a>, a neighborhood of poor immigrants, with brass bands and female preachers. Booth and his followers also pursued “sinners” and frequently preached in bars, brothels and theaters. </p>
<p>Booth’s plan was to send his army worldwide, and his first stop was the United States. One of his early recruits had migrated to Philadelphia and <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">wrote to Booth</a> about the residents’ need for salvation. In 1880, a small party of British Salvationists <a href="http://www.castlegarden.org/">debarked at Castle Garden</a>, New York’s first immigration center. The group immediately started singing hymns set to popular melodies and marching through lower Manhattan. </p>
<p>During the next few days, the <a href="http://creatingdigitalhistory.wikidot.com/harry-hill-s">English “soldiers” tacked up posters</a>, similar to ads for commercial entertainment, for a prayer service at Harry Hill’s, a popular dance hall, theater and saloon. Not only was the venue thick with drunkards, prostitutes and pleasure seekers; its unlikeliness as a religious meeting place <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">guaranteed press attention</a>. </p>
<p>Such unexpected behavior did bring the Salvation Army to the public’s attention. Their boisterousness, even in service of saving souls, was criticized by New York’s clergy and <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">ridiculed in newspapers and magazines</a>. That the Salvation Army featured female preachers at a time when most Protestant groups did not ordain women only added to its notoriety. </p>
<p>But the army did not surrender. Pressing their “invasion” beyond New York City, the soldiers traveled first to Philadelphia and later nationwide. Their exuberance attracted young people and women to the cause. </p>
<p>Young people liked the notion of a military crusade for religious purposes, and women joined because the Salvation Army <a href="https://www.wlupress.wlu.ca/Books/W/Women-in-God-s-Army">offered them positions of leadership and authority</a>. In fact, <a href="https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/people/booth-maud-ballington">William Booth’s daughter-in-law, Maud Ballington,</a> followed by his two daughters, <a href="http://www.newfrontierchronicle.org/emma-booth-tucker-the-consul/">Emma</a> and <a href="https://www.learningtogive.org/resources/booth-evangeline">Evangeline</a>, headed the American Salvation Army from 1887 to 1950. </p>
<h2>Kettles for Christmas dinner</h2>
<p>In both Britain and the U.S., Salvationists saw their mission as twofold: converting sinners and assisting the needy. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">In the Salvation Army’s perspective</a>, the two went hand in hand, which is why members opened shelters for addicts, alcoholics and prostitutes. Yet they also sought to aid “down and outers,” their name for the needy. Among their early outreaches were Christmas dinners for the urban poor. But finding funds for food and gifts was difficult.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247560/original/file-20181127-76764-1jt5lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Salvation Army mini Red Kettle and bell at Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/130946855@N03/24815413578/in/photolist-DNRtUf-DN3nKL-H196PR-21T3LGJ-q38Vgg-pSoPmx-ZAgYZg-GZfFQk-21T3SNS-GZfGDV-tEy6R-dBpJiW-GZgphP-ZQraxh-DN3kim-H18NqT-21RLYbC-21VTJNH-ZAgSyv-21T4Ncq-21RM7J9-ZzsKtx-ZQrHmN-ZzsEZT-DN3juC-DN1JuL-H19eXp-DNRw7G-21QWDKq-91w3jw-aYjpPz-aYjqsZ-aXp7uB-aYjqAv-aYjprF-aYjpFc-aYjqQP-21QW69y-21VUPKe-DN2JyS-ZQqV9s-H19d7a-DNRhf3-21VSKB8-ZztVya-GZfozt-GZgmZn-DN1KCs-21WLJ1P-H18PC2">Robin Wendell/Flickr.com</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>By 1891, Salvationists had outposts nationwide. In San Francisco, Salvation Army Captain Joseph McFee was eager to serve a Christmas feast for a thousand of the city’s poorest residents. Frustrated by his lack of success, <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">he decided to improvise</a>. Grabbing a crab pot from the local wharf, he hung it from a tripod at a busy intersection. Above the pot was a sign: “Fill the Pot for the Poor – Free Dinner on Christmas Day.” McFee’s campaign was a success. </p>
<p>Word spread and the kettles soon <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">provided Christmas dinners</a> for thousands nationwide. </p>
<p>The kettle also helped <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">rehabilitate the Salvation Army’s image</a>. Instead of seeing Salvationists as an unruly pack of religious rebels, many Americans recognized their work with the poor. At a time when neither state nor federal governments provided a social safety net, <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Marching_to_Glory.html?id=-YjZAAAAMAAJ">the Salvation Army offered</a> meals, beds, work and medical facilities to destitute men and women. </p>
<p>But it was the Salvationists’ service in World War I that sealed the deal. Eager to support the American war effort, Salvation Army leaders sent “Sallies,” the popular nickname for army women, to the French front. The Sallies set up huts where they <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/donut-girls-wwi-helped-fill-soldiers-bellies-and-get-women-vote-180962864/">fried donuts</a>, sewed buttons, wrote letters and otherwise “mothered” the troops.</p>
<p>The women’s faith, fortitude and friendship touched many young soldiers. <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674003965">One wrote in his letter home:</a> </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“These good women create an atmosphere that reminds us of home, and out of the millions of men over there not one ever dreams of offering the slightest sign of disrespect or lack of consideration to these wonderful women.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>By the war’s end, the Salvation Army had become a symbol of American humanitarianism, and fundraising was much easier. But after the 1920s, the army’s evangelical crusade took a back seat to social service delivery, at least in their public relations. It was easier to raise money for helping the poor than for converting them. </p>
<h2>Despite challenges, an American icon</h2>
<p>Today, many contributors do not realize the <a href="http://www.iupress.indiana.edu/product_info.php?products_id=806872">Salvation Army is a church</a>, a fact that has caused many Salvation Army leaders consternation. </p>
<p>And, much like other churches, its growth has stalled. Since 2000, it only has <a href="http://www.startribune.com/salvation-army-s-good-deeds-grow-from-little-known-church/466176253/">approximately 90,000 members</a>. Nonetheless, it continues to deliver social services nationwide. <a href="https://salvationarmyannualreport.org/static/36845fa7755ec36c180bbe6779224317.pdf">In 2017</a>, according to its own records, the army served over 50 million meals, operated 141 rehabilitation centers and provided shelter for almost 10 million people. It also provided adult and child day care, job assistance, disaster relief, medical care and community centers. </p>
<p>But like any other long-established institution, the Salvation Army has its challenges. Most recently, LGBT groups <a href="https://www.aclu.org/news/nyclu-sues-salvation-army-religious-discrimination-against-employees-government-funded-social">alleged</a> <a href="https://www.advocate.com/religion/2017/12/08/salvation-army-we-meet-human-need-without-discrimination">discrimination</a> in service provision and in hiring. </p>
<p>The Salvation Army has <a href="https://salvationarmynorth.org/about-us/what-we-believe/lgbt-statement/">responded</a> with its own statements of how it is “open and inclusive to all people.” </p>
<p>It also faces new problems, ranging from a <a href="http://www.fox13news.com/news/local-news/salvation-army-concerned-by-lack-of-bell-ringers">shortage</a> of bell ringers in some cities to <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/illinois/articles/2017-12-25/salvation-army-looks-to-update-to-cashless-kettles">fewer kettle contributions</a> as <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/illinois/articles/2017-12-25/salvation-army-looks-to-update-to-cashless-kettles">people carry less cash</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247562/original/file-20181127-76758-1caufn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Guys and Dolls’ musical.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/poughkeepsiedayschool/6482386599/in/photolist-aSPVGc-7kQFev-7kQCbX-aT36yv-7kQAZr-7kUC9Q-29cx2TY-38h3vN-dMAC6f-Yi851X-9JXvvk-29cx6Yb-9JXVLv-F9LLDg-28UZwhx-EcoB8K-F7sBX7-F1zFar-EGcgWJ-EcoUGc-Ec4nC7-9JXWBc-F1A17K-EcoTbX-2ahY7jv-F7t8MN-Ec4TSW-F9Mgtk-EcpgJT-F1AmWF-EYhTxE-F1Ajo4-F7tfY1-9JXS7n-9JXYcP-5kQ9cN-27xcfum-Ex1RyM-5p3ZD1-5kQ9TW-9JXSM8-9JXSAc-9K1M2d-aT35aK-5C7K2E-5kQ9EG-9JXxsg-9K1jmL-9JXtQZ-9K1tZC">Poughkeepsie Day School/Flickr.com</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Yet the Salvation Army remains a familiar symbol for religious and philanthropic outreach. Each year, when high school and college actors perform “Guys and Dolls,” the Salvation Army graces American stages. This popular musical, inspired by a real-life Salvationist, <a href="http://www.youngsalvationist.org/2015/06/01/the-angel-of-broadway/">captures the missionaries’ zealous dedication</a>. And this holiday season, Grammy-award nomimated singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding <a href="https://www.salvationarmyusa.org/usn/story/ellie-goulding-to-kick-off-129th-salvation-army-red-kettle-campaign/">kicked off the 2019 Red Kettle Campaign</a> during the Dallas Cowboys’ Thanksgiving Day game halftime show. </p>
<p>Salvation Army Captain Joseph McFee’s legacy lives on – providing inspiration to millions of Americans, whether they care about religion or not. </p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of a <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-salvation-armys-red-kettles-became-a-christmas-tradition-107604">piece first published</a> on November 28, 2018.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/107604/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Diane Winston does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Around this time of the year, the Salvation Army’s red kettles become visible as part of holiday giving. How this British evangelical organization came to the US is interesting history.Diane Winston, Associate Professor and Knight Center Chair in Media & Religion, USC Annenberg School for Communication and JournalismLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1072642018-11-21T11:49:24Z2018-11-21T11:49:24ZAmazon’s move will gentrify neighborhoods – at what social cost?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246539/original/file-20181120-161641-1ec0wb7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The largest public housing complex in the country, Queensbridge Houses, is located near the spot where Amazon plans to put a new headquarters.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Amazon-HQ-New-York/42321e5deb9341a9aaa6a7bb0be0cea1/10/0">AP Photo/Mark Lennihan</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When large companies move into an area, <a href="https://www.routledge.com/The-Gentrification-Reader/Lees-Slater-Wyly/p/book/9780415548403">politicians often proclaim</a> how the new business will create jobs, increase tax revenues, and thus lead to economic growth. This is one reason local governments offer <a href="https://www.routledge.com/The-Gentrification-Reader/Lees-Slater-Wyly/p/book/9780415548403">tax incentives</a> to businesses willing to move in. </p>
<p>Amazon’s decision to locate offices in Long Island City across the East River from Manhattan, and in Crystal City on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., follows this pattern. The New York location borders the largest low-income housing area in the United States, with mostly African-American and Hispanic residents whose median household income is well <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/nyregion/amazon-queens-queensbridge-houses.html?module=inline%5D">below the federal poverty level</a>. These people, local politicians claim, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/nyregion/amazon-queens-queensbridge-houses.html?module=inline%5D">will benefit</a> from Amazon’s move to the neighborhood.</p>
<p>However, when large companies with an upscale and specialized workforce move into an area, the result is more often gentrification. As economic development takes place and prices of real estate go up, the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/107874037006003">poorer residents of the neighborhood are forced out</a> and replaced by wealthier ones. </p>
<p>Is such a market-driven approach that accepts displacement ethically justifiable? And how do we even measure its costs? </p>
<h2>Can gentrification ever be ethical?</h2>
<p>Although politicians don’t typically frame gentrification as a question of ethics, in accepting the displacement of poor residents in favor of better-off residents they are, in effect, making an argument based on ideas of utilitarianism.</p>
<p>Utilitarianism, developed as a modern theory of ethics by the 19th-century philosophers Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, seeks the greatest balance of <a href="https://global.oup.com/ushe/product/a-21st-century-ethical-toolbox-9780190621155?cc=us&lang=en&">happiness over suffering</a> in society as a whole. Utilitarianism seeks the greatest net benefit in any situation. In economics, it is often expressed in monetary terms. </p>
<p>A classic example is of a new dam that will generate electricity, irrigate crops and provide a new lake for recreation. But it might also displace people and flood land that is used for other purposes. </p>
<p><a href="https://global.oup.com/ushe/product/a-21st-century-ethical-toolbox-9780190621155?cc=us&lang=en&">Economists might calculate</a> the dollar cost of the dam itself, the monetary value of the land lost, and the cost to relocate displaced people. They would weigh these monetary costs against the value of the electricity gained, the increased food production, and added income from recreation. </p>
<p>What economists miss in these calculations are the social costs. For example, they do not count the lives disrupted through displacement, nor do they determine if the benefits of the dam are equally available to all.</p>
<p>Gentrification, as an economic and social phenomenon, is not limited to cities in the United States. Gentrification has become a global issue. <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1467-8330.00249">In cities as geographically dispersed as</a> Amsterdam, Sydney, Berlin and Vancouver, gentrification has been linked to free-market economic policies. Put another way, when governments decide to let housing and property markets exist with little or no regulation, gentrification typically <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1467-8330.00249">flourishes</a>. </p>
<p>When neighborhoods gentrify, politicians and policymakers often point to physical and economic improvements and the better quality of life for residents in an area <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/06/business/economy/amazon-hq2-lic-virginia-economy.html">after gentrification</a>. For example in 1985, during a period of intense urban renewal in New York City, the Real Estate Board of New York took out advertisements in The New York Times to claim that “<a href="https://www.routledge.com/The-New-Urban-Frontier-Gentrification-and-the-Revanchist-City/Smith/p/book/9780415132558">neighborhoods and lives blossom</a>” under gentrification. </p>
<p>Through the lens of utilitarianism, one could say that the population living in neighborhoods after gentrification experience greater happiness than before. </p>
<p>The fallacy of this argument is, of course, that these “happier” populations are overwhelmingly not the same people as were there before gentrification. As a scholar who works on questions of <a href="https://www.routledge.com/products/search?keywords=Alexandra+Staub">ethics in the built environment</a>, I have studied how we, as the concerned public, can better equip ourselves to see through such arguments.</p>
<p>Economic development in an area leads to less poverty in that area, not because the personal economic situation of poor people who live there has improved, but because the poor people have quite simply been erased out of the picture.</p>
<h2>Erasing the working class</h2>
<p>Urban geographer <a href="https://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/homes/tslater/">Tom Slater</a> points to a similar disappearing act within gentrification research. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246540/original/file-20181120-161624-1bz2kvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Tenants being pushed out on account of rising rents in Harlem in 2007.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Harlem-Housing-Gentrification/b034f7458b91428db8b6158160e041f6/126/0">AP Photos/Bebeto Matthews</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Researchers once focused on the experiences of those negatively affected by gentrification. For example, one study of the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn found that gentrification commonly removed manufacturing from inner city areas, leading to blue-collar workers <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1068/a36240https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1068/a36240">losing urban job opportunities</a>. </p>
<p>Another study found that gentrification was associated with increased social hardships for residents. Not only did their housing expenses rise, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1080/00420980500388710">social networks disintegrated</a> as neighbors were forced to move elsewhere. In an examination of seven New York neighborhoods, for example, the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1080/00420980500388710">researchers found</a> that half of the poor households who had remained in gentrifying areas were paying more than two-thirds of their income for rent.</p>
<p>Where gentrification research once focused on evictions of low-income and working class residents, housing affordability problems, and torn social fabrics caused through changing neighborhoods, the talk has since turned to the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1468-2427.2006.00689.x">experiences of the middle classes</a> who are doing the gentrifying. </p>
<p>Terms like “competitive progress” and “regeneration, revitalization and renaissance” of urban neighborhoods <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1468-2427.2006.00689.x">are commonly used</a> to describe a process whereby physically distressed areas of a city have their buildings renovated and updated.</p>
<p>Urban planner and best-selling author <a href="http://www.creativeclass.com/richard_florida">Richard Florida</a> also focuses on the gentrifiers. In his much discussed <a href="https://www.basicbooks.com/titles/richard-florida/the-rise-of-the-creative-class-revisited/9780465038985/">2002 book</a>, Florida maintains that cities with a large gay and “bohemian” population of artists and intellectuals tend to thrive economically. </p>
<p>He calls this group of hip and affluent urbanites the “creative class,” and states that they are responsible for a city’s economic success. When Florida’s book came out, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/01/arts/the-cities-and-their-new-elite.html">city leaders throughout the United States</a> quickly seized on his ideas to promote their own urban renewal projects.</p>
<p>When researchers and urban leaders focus on the gentrifiers, the displaced poor and working class are doubly erased – from the gentrifying areas they once called home, and with <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781317129318">few exceptions</a>, from the concerns of urban policymakers.</p>
<h2>The need to restore happiness</h2>
<p>Amazon’s move to Washington and New York along with an influx of well-paid employees brings us back to the question of how we might apply the ethical concept of utilitarianism to understand the greatest balance of happiness over suffering for the greatest number of people. </p>
<p>In my view, this number must include the poor and working class. In an area threatened by gentrification, the economic and social costs for displaced residents is typically high. </p>
<p>To make ethical decisions, we must consider the people who suffer the consequences of rapidly rising costs in the area they call home as part of the ethical equation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/107264/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexandra Staub does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>When large companies move into an area, the result is often gentrification. When this happens, the economic and social costs for displaced residents is typically high.Alexandra Staub, Associate Professor of Architecture; Affiliate Faculty, Rock Ethics Institute, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1035052018-10-23T10:43:58Z2018-10-23T10:43:58ZWhy the Christian idea of hell no longer persuades people to care for the poor<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/241693/original/file-20181022-105754-921ihj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What was behind early depictions of hell?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/zabowski/15465394027">Erica Zabowski/Flickr.com</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s that time of the year when hell is used as a common theme for entertainment and <a href="http://www.7floorsofhell.com/">hell-themed haunted houses</a> and <a href="https://variety.com/2018/film/reviews/hell-fest-review-1202961010">horror movies</a> <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/10/30/these-evangelical-haunted-houses-are-designed-to-show-sinners-that-theyre-going-to-hell/?utm_term=.868a196a5002">pop up all over</a> the country. </p>
<p>Although many of us now associate hell with Christianity, the idea of an afterlife existed much earlier. Greeks and Romans, for example, used the concept of Hades, an underworld where the dead lived, both as a way of understanding death and as a moral tool.</p>
<p>However, in the present times, the use of this rhetoric has radically changed. </p>
<h2>Rhetoric in ancient Greece and Rome</h2>
<p>The earliest Greek and Roman depictions of Hades in the epics did not focus on punishment, but described a <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0136%3Abook%3D11%3Acard%3D1">dark shadowy place</a> of dead people.</p>
<p>In Book 11 of the Greek epic the <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0136%3Abook%3D11%3Acard%3D1">“Odyssey</a>,” Odysseus travels to the realm of the dead, encountering countless familiar faces, including his own mother. </p>
<p>Near the end of Odysseus’ tour, he encounters a few souls being punished for their misdeeds, including Tantalus, who was sentenced eternally to have food and drink just out of reach. It is this punishment from which the word “tantalize” originated.</p>
<p>Hundreds of years later, the Roman poet Virgil, in his epic poem “Aeneid,” describes a similar <a href="http://www.theoi.com/Text/VirgilAeneid6.html">journey of a Trojan, Aeneas</a>, to an underworld, where many individuals receive rewards and punishments. </p>
<p>This ancient curriculum was used for <a href="https://www.mohrsiebeck.com/en/book/educating-early-christians-through-the-rhetoric-of-hell-9783161529634">teaching</a> everything from politics to economics to virtue, to students across the Roman empire, for hundreds of years. </p>
<p>In later literature, these early traditions around punishment persuaded readers to behave ethically in life so that they could avoid punishment after death. For example, Plato <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0168%3Abook%3D10">describes the journey of a man named Er</a>, who watches as souls ascend to a place of reward, and descend to a place of punishment. Lucian, an ancient second century A.D. satirist takes this one step further in depicting Hades as a place where the <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/lucian-menippus_descent_hades/1925/pb_LCL162.71.xml">rich turned into donkeys</a> and had to bear the burdens of the poor on their backs for 250 years. </p>
<p>For Lucian this comedic depiction of the rich in hell was a way to critique excess and economic inequality in his own world. </p>
<h2>Early Christians</h2>
<p>By the time the New Testament gospels were written in the first century A.D., Jews and early Christians were moving away from the idea that all of the dead go to the same place. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241698/original/file-20181022-105770-1slmx4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Early Christians portrayed hell through different terms.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/paukrus/17069609286">paukrus/Flickr.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the Gospel of Matthew, the story of Jesus is told with <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+8%3A12&version=NRSV">frequent mentions</a> of “the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.” As I describe in my <a href="https://www.mohrsiebeck.com/en/book/educating-early-christians-through-the-rhetoric-of-hell-9783161529634">book</a>, many of the images of judgment and punishment that Matthew uses represent the early development of a Christian notion of hell. </p>
<p>The Gospel of Luke does not discuss final judgment as frequently, but it does contain a memorable representation of hell. The <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+16%3A19-31&version=NRSV">Gospel describes Lazarus</a>, a poor man who had lived his life hungry and covered with sores, at the gate of a rich man, who disregards his pleas. After death, however, the poor man is taken to heaven. Meanwhile, it is the turn of the rich man to be in agony as he suffers in the flames of hell and cries out for Lazarus to give him some water. </p>
<h2>For the marginalized other</h2>
<p>Matthew and Luke are not simply offering audiences a fright fest. Like Plato and later Lucian, these New Testament authors recognized that images of damnation would capture the attention of their audience and persuade them to behave according to the ethical norms of each gospel. </p>
<p>Later Christian reflections on hell picked up and expanded this emphasis. Examples can be seen in the later apocalypses of <a href="http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/apocalypsepeter-roberts.html">Peter</a> and <a href="http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/apocalypsepaul.html">Paul</a> – stories that use strange imagery to depict future times and otherworldly spaces. These apocalypses included punishments for those who did not prepare meals for others, care for the poor or care for the widows in their midst. </p>
<p>Although these stories about hell were not ultimately included in the Bible, they were extremely <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/27793794?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents">popular</a> in the ancient church, and were used regularly in worship.</p>
<p>A major idea in Matthew was that love for one’s neighbor was central to following Jesus. Later depictions of hell built upon <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+25%3A30-46&version=NRSV">this emphasis</a>, inspiring people to care for the “least of these” in their community.</p>
<h2>Damnation then and now</h2>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/241697/original/file-20181022-105782-1y3xl6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The idea of hell is used to bring about conversions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/en/view-image.php?image=114461&picture=repent-or-burn">William Morris</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the contemporary world, the notion of hell is used to scare people into becoming Christians, with an emphasis on personal sins rather than a failure to care for the poor or hungry.</p>
<p>In the United States, as religion scholar <a href="https://religiousstudies.stanford.edu/people/kathryn-gin-lum">Katherine Gin Lum</a> <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/damned-nation-9780199843114?cc=us&lang=en&">has argued</a>, the threat of hell was a powerful tool in the age of nation-building. In the early Republic, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/damned-nation-9780199843114?cc=us&lang=en&">as she explains</a>, “fear of the sovereign could be replaced by fear of God.” </p>
<p>As the ideology of republicanism developed, with its emphasis on individual rights and political choice, the way that the rhetoric of hell worked also shifted. Instead of motivating people to choose behaviors that promoted social cohesion, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/damned-nation-9780199843114?cc=us&lang=en&">hell was used by evangelical preachers</a> to get individuals to repent for their sins.</p>
<p>Even though people still read Matthew and Luke, it is this individualistic emphasis, I argue, that continues to inform our modern understanding of hell. It is evident in the hell-themed Halloween attractions with their focus on gore and personal shortcomings. </p>
<p>These depictions are unlikely to portray the consequences for people who have neglected to feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, cloth the naked, care for the sick or visit those in prison. </p>
<p>The fears around hell, in the current times, play only on the ancient rhetoric of eternal punishment.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103505/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Meghan Henning received funding from the Jacob K. Javitts fellowship (U.S. department of education). </span></em></p>Hell-themed Halloween attractions play on people’s fears. The early depictions of hell were meant to use fear as a moral guide to help others.Meghan Henning, Assistant Professor of Christian Origins, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1013012018-08-31T10:44:27Z2018-08-31T10:44:27ZWant to live longer? Consider the ethics<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233952/original/file-20180828-86126-1rw930s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Telomeres, a part of DNA that hold the key to biological aging.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/telomere-growth-longer-length-dna-medical-611922089?src=cStGUiKO4G39KUYpIPiWvA-1-0">Lightspring/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Life extension – using science to slow or halt human aging so that people live far longer than they do naturally – <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/aging-is-reversible-at-least-in-human-cells-and-live-mice/">may one day be possible</a>. </p>
<p>Big business is taking this possibility seriously. In 2013 Google founded a company called <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/s/603087/googles-long-strange-life-span-trip/">Calico to develop life extension methods</a>, and Silicon Valley billionaires Jeff Bezos and Peter Thiel have invested in <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/29/-jeff-bezos-is-backing-this-scientist-who-is-working-on-a-cure-for-aging.html">Unity Biotechnology</a>, which has a market cap of US$700 million. Unity Biotechnology focuses mainly on preventing age-related diseases, but its research could lead to methods for <a href="https://www.nasdaq.com/article/can-unity-biotechnology-find-a-cure-for-age-cm956706">slowing or preventing aging</a> itself.</p>
<p>From my perspective <a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/new-methuselahs">as a philosopher</a>, this poses two ethical questions. First, is extended life good? Second, could extending life harm others?</p>
<h2>Is living forever a good thing?</h2>
<p>Not everyone is convinced that extending life would be good. In a 2013 survey by the <a href="http://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2013/08/Radical-life-extension-full.pdf">Pew Research Center’s Religion and Public Life project</a>, some respondents worried that it might become boring, or that they would miss out on the benefits of growing old, such as gaining wisdom and learning to accept death.</p>
<p>Philosophers such as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/jun/13/guardianobituaries.obituaries">Bernard Williams</a> have shared this concern. In 1973 Williams <a href="http://resourcelists.st-andrews.ac.uk/items/75AD40A1-A3D3-0F78-163C-E8851C80C650.html">argued that</a> immortality would become intolerably boring if one never changed. He also argued that, if people changed enough to avoid intolerable boredom, they would eventually change so much that they’d be entirely different people.</p>
<p>On the other hand, not everyone is persuaded that extended life would be a bad life. I’m not. But that’s not the point. No one is proposing to force anyone to use life extension, and – out of respect for liberty – no one should be prevented from using it.</p>
<p>Nineteenth-century philosopher <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/mill/">John Stuart Mill</a> <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/34901/34901-h/34901-h.htm">argued that society must respect individual liberty</a> when it comes to deciding what’s good for us. In other words, it’s wrong to interfere with someone’s life choices even when he or she makes bad choices. </p>
<p>However, Mill also held that our liberty right is limited by the <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/mill-moral-political/#HarPri">“harm principle.”</a> The harm principle says that the right to individual liberty is limited by a duty not to harm others.</p>
<p>There are many possible harms: Dictators might live far too long, society might become too conservative and risk-averse and pensions might have to be limited, to name a few. One that stands out to me is the injustice of unequal access.</p>
<p>What does unequal access looks like when it comes to life extension?</p>
<h2>Available only to the rich?</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233954/original/file-20180828-86135-x5x1tq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Will life extension increase inequality?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/wealthy-couple-classic-convertible-308973545?src=tR9N13P-uGaqJT9ChsU3pg-1-7">Nejron Photo/Shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many people, such as philosopher <a href="https://www.manchester.ac.uk/research/john.harris/">John Harris</a> and those in the Pew Center survey, worry that life extension would be <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/288/5463/59">available only to the rich</a> and make existing inequalities even worse. </p>
<p>Indeed, it is unjust when some people live longer than the poor because they have better health care. It would be far more unjust if the rich could live several decades or centuries longer than anyone else and gain more time to consolidate their advantages.</p>
<p>Some philosophers suggest that society should prevent inequality by <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1467-8519.00287">banning life extension</a>. This is equality by denial – if not everyone can get it, then no one gets it.</p>
<p>However, as philosopher <a href="http://philosophyfaculty.ucsd.edu/faculty/rarneson/">Richard J. Arneson</a> notes, “leveling-down” – <a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-us/A+Companion+to+Contemporary+Political+Philosophy%2C+2+Volume+Set%2C+2nd+Edition-p-9781405136532">achieving equality by making some people worse off</a> without making anyone better off – is unjust.</p>
<p>Indeed, as I argue in <a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/new-methuselahs">my recent book on life extension ethics</a>, most of us reject leveling-down in other situations. For example, there are not enough human organs for transplant, but no one thinks the answer is to ban organ transplants.</p>
<p>Moreover, banning or slowing down the development of life extension may simply delay a time when the technology gets cheap enough for everyone to have it. TV sets were once a toy for the wealthy; now even poor families have them. In time, this could happen with life extension.</p>
<p>Justice requires that society subsidize access to life extension to the extent it can afford to do so. However, justice does not require banning life extension just because it’s not possible to give it to everyone.</p>
<h2>Overpopulation crisis?</h2>
<p>Another possible harm is that the world will become overcrowded. Many people, including philosophers <a href="https://www.utilitarian.net/singer/">Peter Singer</a> and <a href="https://phil.ucalgary.ca/profiles/walter-glannon">Walter Glannon</a>, are concerned that extending human life would <a href="https://doi.org/10.1076/jmep.27.3.339.2978">cause severe overpopulation</a>, pollution and resource shortages.</p>
<p>One way to prevent this harm, as <a href="https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/walter-glannon/genes-and-future-people/9780813345512/">some philosophers have proposed</a>, is to limit the number of children after life extension. </p>
<p>This would be politically very difficult and very hard on those who want longer lives, but trying to ban life extension would be equally difficult, and denying people longer lives would be just as hard on them – if not more so. Limiting reproduction, as hard as that may be, is a better way to follow the harm principle.</p>
<h2>Will death be worse?</h2>
<p>Another possible harm is that widespread life extension might make death worse for some people.</p>
<p>All else being equal, it is better to die at 90 than nine. At 90 you’re not missing out on many years, but at nine you lose most of your potential life. As philosopher <a href="http://jeffersonmcmahan.com/">Jeff McMahan</a> argues, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-ethics-of-killing-9780195169829?cc=us&lang=en&">death is worse the more years it takes from you</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233955/original/file-20180828-86129-13ys4tx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">What will be the right measure of age?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/smiling-aged-businesswoman-glasses-looking-colleague-1027563301?src=keTJkbAWjq5GI06k0170hw-1-17">fizkes/Shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Now imagine that people living in a far wealthier neighborhood don’t have to die at 90 or so. They can afford life extension, and will live to 190. You can’t afford it, and you are dying at 80. Is your death not so bad, for you’re losing only a few years, or is your death now far worse, because – if only you had life extension – you might live to 190? Are you losing 10 years, or are you losing 110 years? </p>
<p>In a world where some people get life extension and some don’t, what’s the right measure for how many years death takes from you?</p>
<p>Perhaps the right measure is how many years life extension would give you, multiplied by the odds of getting it. For example, if you have a 20 percent chance of getting 100 years, then your death is worse by however many years you’d get in a normal lifespan, plus 20 years. </p>
<p>If so, then the fact that some people can get life extension makes your death somewhat worse. This is a more subtle kind of harm than living in an overpopulated world, but it’s a harm all the same.</p>
<p>However, not just any harm is enough to outweigh liberty. After all, expensive new medical treatments can extend a normal lifespan, but even if that makes death slightly worse for those who can’t afford those treatments, no one thinks such treatments should be banned.</p>
<p>I believe that life extension is a good thing, but it does pose threats to society that must be taken seriously.</p>
<p>
<section class="inline-content">
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248895/original/file-20181204-133100-t34yqm.png?w=128&h=128">
<div>
<header>John K. Davis is the author of:</header>
<p><a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/new-methuselahs">New Methuselahs
The Ethics of Life Extension</a></p>
<footer>MIT Press provides funding as a member of The Conversation US.</footer>
</div>
</section>
</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/101301/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John K. Davis is a Professor of Philosophy at California State University, Fullerton. His research on life extension ethics was partially supported by a grant from The Templeton Foundation through the Immortality Project.
MIT Press provides funding as a member of The Conversation US.</span></em></p>Several companies are trying to develop life extension methods that could enable some people to live far longer. There are some ethical dilemmas.John K. Davis, Professor of Philosophy, California State University, Fullerton Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/971422018-08-15T09:55:31Z2018-08-15T09:55:31ZShould universities lower entry grades for disadvantaged students?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230894/original/file-20180807-191013-1iezppt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shuttertstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Students from less advantaged backgrounds are grossly underrepresented in Britain’s top universities. This underrepresentation of certain groups is particularly pronounced in highly competitive courses such as medicine. In England, for example, 80% of medical students come from just <a href="https://www.medschools.ac.uk/our-work/selection/selecting-for-excellence">20% of the country’s secondary schools</a>. This leads to a profession dominated by certain demographic groups.</p>
<p>This imbalance isn’t just an issue of “fairness” or social equality. It is well established that <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/361/bmj.k2336">UK trained doctors</a> from affluent backgrounds are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/may/19/nhs-gp-doctors-health-poverty-inequality-jeremy-hunt-denis-campbell-deprived-areas">less likely to choose to work in rural or deprived areas</a>. This is especially true in less desirable specialisms such as general practice and psychiatry. </p>
<p>This has left the NHS heavily reliant on the recruitment of overseas doctors to fill such posts. But such staff are frequently recruited from low and middle income countries that can ill afford to lose their own homegrown doctors.</p>
<p>It has <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k2336">been highlighted</a> by Julian Simpson, who has written on and researched the subject, that this “shortage” of doctors willing to work in certain areas stems, fundamentally, from a “lack of alignment between the aims and needs of the NHS and the social and professional aspirations of doctors trained in British medical schools”. </p>
<h2>Grade discounts</h2>
<p><a href="http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/8/5/e020291">Recent research</a> shows that, once in university, students from England’s most poorly performing secondary schools generally do as well academically as their peers from England’s highest performing schools. Even if they achieved somewhat lower A-level grades. <a href="http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/year/2014/201403">Similar findings</a> from higher education in general have been reported. </p>
<p>This lends evidence to a fact that seems intuitive. That is, the grades a pupil achieves at A-level (or equivalent) are, on average, at least partly dependent on the school they attend. So, in order to make university admissions fairer, should students who attend schools where pupils generally leave with lower grades, be offered places based on reduced A-level achievement – known as “grade discounting”?</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230896/original/file-20180807-191038-1tix7ws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A level playing field?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some universities – such as Birmingham, Southampton and King’s College London – have already trialled such A-Level “grade discounting” for medical school place offers for applicants from less advantaged backgrounds. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39508.606157.BE">early evidence</a> from such schemes is that the differences in academic outcomes between students entering with reduced A-level requirements and mainstream entrants are minimal, at most. </p>
<p>At present, it is unclear whether any meaningful differences would exist between qualified doctors who entered medical school via conventional policies or those who had gained admittance via such schemes. After all, people just want to be treated by safe, competent and compassionate practitioners. </p>
<h2>Like for like?</h2>
<p>But rolling out such an approach on a university wide scale, wouldn’t be a straightforward matter. For a start, there is the issue of how to effectively “contextualise” A-level (or equivalent) achievements. In this way, clear information about how to compare secondary schools would have to be available to university selectors – and such information currently is not always easy to come by. Likewise, for overseas applicants, making comparisons between institutions would be difficult, if not impossible. </p>
<p>Then there is the issue that some pupils from less advantaged backgrounds may not even consider applying for more prestigious or competitive courses at university. So such A-level grade discounting would have to be part of a package of measures to increase universities’ outreach among schools and the dissemination of information to teachers and careers advisers. </p>
<p>Such policies would also be clearly vulnerable to “gaming” from well-resourced families. It is easy to imagine, for example, how some advantaged pupils may be independently schooled until the last couple of years of their education, and for them then to be moved to state schools to take advantage of such admissions policies. </p>
<h2>Further afield</h2>
<p>In the US, “affirmative action” policies have been used to encourage ethnic diversity within some universities. Such policies have been <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/579/14-981/">weighed and tested through the court system</a>. The resulting verdicts make it clear that such approaches to widening participation cannot rest solely on the issue of “moral equality”. Rather, the case has to be made based on the educational advantages of a more diverse population of students. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://qz.com/714809/the-supreme-court-has-confirmed-that-race-still-plays-a-key-role-in-access-to-college/">most recent US Supreme Court verdict</a> also stressed that any “positive discrimination” in favour of underrepresented groups should also be proportionate and regularly reviewed. This implies that “grade discounting”, involving modest reductions in the A-level requirement for entry to certain courses for certain disadvantaged applicants, if applied with clear objectives and regularly reviewed, is likely to withstand legal challenge, at least in the US.</p>
<p>So while grade discounting is unlikely to cure all the lack of diversity on the most competitive university courses, it may well play a useful role as part of a package of measures designed to widen access to certain professions in the UK.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97142/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Tiffin has previously received research funding on behalf of his University employer, as part of a contact competitive tendering process, to undertake research, including relation to widening access, from the UK Clinical Aptitude Test Board, the Medical Schools Council and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lazaro Mwakesi Mwandigha is currently involved in a postdoctoral research project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMF). During his PhD, he received financial support from the UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) Board. In addition, Hull York Medical School (HYMS) financially contributed to the student fees. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lewis Paton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Research shows that 80% of medical students come from just 20% of the UK’s secondary schools.Paul Tiffin, Reader in Psychometric Epidemiology, University of YorkLazaro Mwakesi Mwandigha, Postgraduate research assistant, Imperial College LondonLewis Paton, Research Fellow, University of YorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/922302018-02-21T16:34:59Z2018-02-21T16:34:59ZSouth Africa’s finance minister played the tax cards he had left: wealth and VAT<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207321/original/file-20180221-132663-8vf3yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">When the going gets tough, taxes go up.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>South Africa’s <a href="http://www.treasury.gov.za/documents/national%20budget/2018/">2018 national budget</a> came with a raft of tax increases indicating the country’s desperation to address a growing gap in its public finances. These include a hike in Value Added Tax from 14% to 15%. Sibonelo Radebe asked Lee-Ann Steenkamp to highlight the key tax developments.</em></p>
<p><strong>What is your general impression of the budget speech?</strong></p>
<p>I’m cautiously optimistic. In his own words, the minister of finance Malusi Gigaba noted this was a tough but hopeful budget. The budget speech echoed the theme of rebuilding and restoration set out in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-ramaphosas-moment-of-hope-is-built-on-a-fragile-foundation-92043">state of the nation address</a>.</p>
<p><strong>What is your impression around the key tax announcements?</strong></p>
<p>Given the increases in personal income taxes in previous years major tax instruments have reached their limit in being used to raise revenue sustainably. As a result the minister only had two options to work with – focusing on wealth transfer taxes and Value Added Tax (VAT). </p>
<p>The result was that estate duty and donations tax rates were increased from 20% to 25% (with certain thresholds applying). And the VAT rate was increased from 14% to 15%. This won’t be a popular choice for the trade unions. But the <a href="http://www.taxcom.org.za/">Davis Tax Committee</a>, set up by government to assess ways of improving the country’s tax policy, showed that a VAT adjustment would have the least detrimental effect on economic growth and employment over the medium term. In addition, the negative impact on poor households is mitigated by the zero-rating of basic foodstuffs.</p>
<p><strong>What are the main drivers of the tax developments?</strong></p>
<p>The tax proposals are designed to increase revenue collection. And the impending sugar tax (now called a health promotion levy) and carbon tax show that environmental and health considerations have begun to play a role in tax policy.</p>
<p>Overall, the tax policy measures are designed to raise R36 billion in additional revenue in the 2018/19 financial year. These measures are aimed at reducing the budget deficit and funding fee free higher education and training for students from poor households.</p>
<p><strong>Were there any missed opportunities from a tax perspective?</strong></p>
<p>To create more certainty for tax planning it would have been helpful if the minister had explicitly said something about the introduction of a wealth tax. The <a href="https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/economy/2017-04-25-davis-committee-to-mull-wealth-tax/">Davis Committee</a> looked into the efficacy of a wealth tax. The options would be charging it as a land tax, as an annual net wealth tax or as a national tax on the value of property (over and above municipal rates). </p>
<p>A wealth tax raised on the value of land would be complex. For example, it can’t be assumed that all private land owners are wealthy individuals. In the same vein, a national tax on the value of property would suffer similar shortcomings to an annual land tax. Thresholds would have to be used as well otherwise ownership would be used as a proxy for wealth.</p>
<p>An annual wealth tax would also be extremely complex and would probably lead to increased compliance and enforcement costs for the South African Revenue Services. This raises the question: would the cost be worth the additional tax revenue? We don’t know. What’s clear is that further in-depth research is required by the Davis Tax Committee, followed by a broad public consultation process. </p>
<p>At the very least the finance minister should have highlighted the issue in his speech. Policy transparency goes a long way in assuring investors (and taxpayers) that their money is in safe hands.</p>
<p><strong>Any other thoughts?</strong></p>
<p>The minister admitted that corrupt and wasteful expenditure by the government had eroded taxpayers’ trust in the state. This is a good starting point. But we’ve heard acknowledgements like this before, with very little (if any) progress afterwards. </p>
<p>The next few months will be crucial to see how the promises made by Ramaphosa will play out. Hopefully the governance and accountability of the South African Revenue Services will get immediate attention.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/92230/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lee-Ann Steenkamp is affiliated with the South African Institute of Tax Professionals (SAIT).</span></em></p>The South African budget speech echoed the theme of rebuilding set out by President Cyril Ramaphosa in his state of the nation address.Lee-Ann Steenkamp, Senior lecturer, University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB), Stellenbosch UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/890482017-12-13T11:22:37Z2017-12-13T11:22:37Z3 myths about the poor that Republicans are using to support slashing US safety net<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198817/original/file-20171212-9451-1baw0sz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sen. Chuck Grassley recently seemed to suggest some poor people spend all their money on "booze or women or movies."</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Republicans continue to use long-debunked myths about the poor as they defend <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/johntharvey/2017/12/02/economists-say-the-trump-tax-plan-will-have-disastrous-consequences/#207ea56c4209">lower taxes for the rich</a> and <a href="http://thehill.com/homenews/house/363642-ryan-pledges-entitlement-reform-in-2018">deep cuts to the social safety net</a> to pay for them. In so doing, they are essentially <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2017/12/04/two-ugly-quotes-from-republicans-reveal-the-truth-about-their-tax-plan/?utm_term=.07ba3f41345c">expressing scorn</a> for working class and low-income Americans. </p>
<p>Sen. Chuck Grassley, for example, recently <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/12/04/grassley-explains-why-people-dont-invest-booze-or-women-or-movies/">justified</a> reducing the number of wealthy families exposed to the estate tax as a way to recognize “the people that are investing, as opposed to those that are just spending every darn penny they have, whether it’s on booze or women or movies.”</p>
<p>Similarly, Sen. Orrin Hatch <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2017/dec/05/context-orrin-hatchs-comments-about-chip-people-wh/">raised concerns</a> about funding certain entitlement programs. “I have a rough time wanting to spend billions and billions and trillions of dollars to help people who won’t help themselves, won’t lift a finger and expect the federal government to do everything,” he said.</p>
<p>These statements, the likes of which I expect we’ll all hear more of in coming months, reinforce three harmful narratives about low-income Americans: People who receive benefits don’t work, they don’t deserve help and the money spent on the social safety net is a waste of money. </p>
<p>Based on my <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2423540">research</a> and 20 years of experience as a clinical law professor representing low-income clients, I know that these statements are false and only serve to reinforce misconceptions about working class and poor Americans.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198811/original/file-20171212-9451-1gx6e1w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=507&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Food participants get an average of $125 a month, hardly enough to feed a family without earning money as well.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Most welfare recipients are makers not takers</h2>
<p>The first myth, that people who receive public benefits are “takers” rather than “makers,” is flatly untrue for the vast majority of working-age recipients.</p>
<p>Consider Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, formerly known as food stamps, which currently serve about <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/people-food-stamps-snap-decline-participation-640500">42 million Americans</a>. At least one adult in more than half of SNAP-recipient households <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/policy-basics-introduction-to-the-supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap">are working</a>. And the average SNAP subsidy is $125 per month, or $1.40 per meal – hardly enough to justify quitting a job.</p>
<p>As for Medicaid, nearly <a href="https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/understanding-the-intersection-of-medicaid-and-work/">80 percent of adults</a> receiving Medicaid live in families where someone works, and more than half are working themselves.</p>
<p>In early December, House Speaker <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2017/12/06/politics/paul-ryan-entitlement-reform/index.html">Paul Ryan said</a>, “We have a welfare system that’s trapping people in poverty and effectively paying people not to work.” </p>
<p>Not true. Welfare – officially called Temporary Assistance to Needy Families – has <a href="http://www.aphsa.org/content/dam/NASTA/PDF/CRS-RPT_R44751_2017-02-01.pdf">required work</a> as a condition of eligibility since then-President Bill Clinton signed welfare reform into law in 1996. And the <a href="https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/individuals/earned-income-tax-credit/do-i-qualify-for-earned-income-tax-credit-eitc">earned income tax credit</a>, a tax credit for low- and moderate-income workers, by definition, supports only people who work.</p>
<p>Workers apply for public benefits because they need assistance to make ends meet. American workers are among <a href="http://time.com/4621185/worker-productivity-countries/">the most productive in the world</a>, but over the last 40 years the bottom half of income earners have seen <a href="http://equitablegrowth.org/research-analysis/republican-tax-plan-slams-workers-and-job-creators-in-favor-of-the-rich-and-inherited-wealth/">no income growth</a>. As a result, since 1973, worker productivity has <a href="http://www.epi.org/productivity-pay-gap/">grown almost six times</a> faster than wages. </p>
<p>In addition to wage stagnation, most Americans are spending more than <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cesan.nr0.htm">one-third of their income</a> on housing, which is increasingly unaffordable. There are 11 million renter households paying more than <a href="http://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/jchs.harvard.edu/files/harvard_jchs_state_of_the_nations_housing_2017_chap1.pdf.">half their income</a> on housing. And there is <a href="http://nlihc.org/oor">no county</a> in America where a minimum wage worker can afford a two-bedroom home. Still, only <a href="http://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/oor/OOR_2017.pdf">1 in 4</a> eligible households receive any form of government housing assistance.</p>
<p>To be sure, there are recipients of public benefits who do not work. They are primarily children, the disabled and the elderly – in other words, <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/who-really-receives-welfare-4126592">people who cannot or should not work.</a> These groups constitute the majority of public benefits recipients.</p>
<p>Society should support these people out of basic decency, but there are self-interested reasons as well. To begin with, all working adults have been children, will someday be old and, at any time, might face calamities that take them out of the workforce. The safety net exists to rescue people during these vulnerable periods. Indeed, most people who receive public benefits leave the programs within <a href="https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2015/cb15-97.html">three years</a>.</p>
<p>Moreover, many public benefits pay for themselves over time, as healthier and financially secure people are more productive and contribute to the overall economy. For example, <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/policy-basics-introduction-to-the-supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap">every dollar in SNAP spending</a> is estimated to generate more than $1.70 in economic activity. </p>
<p>Similarly, Medicaid benefits are associated with enhancing <a href="https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/understanding-the-intersection-of-medicaid-and-work/">work</a> opportunities. The <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/eitc-and-child-tax-credit-promote-work-reduce-poverty-and-support-childrens">earned income tax credit</a> contributes to work rates, improves the health of recipient families and has long-term educational and earnings benefits for children. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199016/original/file-20171213-27588-15tfh1m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The current federal minimum wage is hardly enough to feed a family.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What the needy deserve</h2>
<p>The second myth is that low-income Americans do not deserve a helping hand. </p>
<p>This idea derives from our belief that the U.S. is a meritocracy where the most deserving rise to the top. Yet where a person ends up on the income ladder is tied to where they started out. </p>
<p>Indeed, America is not nearly as socially mobile as we like to think. Forty percent of Americans born into the bottom-income quintile – the poorest 20 percent – will stay there. And the same “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/10/06/striking-new-research-on-inequality-whatever-you-thought-its-worse/?utm_term=.074d818b5336">stickiness</a>” exists in the top quintile. </p>
<p>As for people born into the middle class, only 20 percent will ascend to the top <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/03/03/the-mobility-myth">quintile</a> in their lifetimes.</p>
<p>The third myth is that government assistance is a waste of money and doesn’t accomplish its goals. </p>
<p>In fact, poverty rates would <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/blog/safety-net-cut-poverty-nearly-in-half-last-year;">double</a> without the safety net, to say nothing of human suffering. Last year, the safety net lifted <a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/chart-book-accomplishments-of-the-safety-net">38 million</a> people, including 8 million children, out of poverty.</p>
<h2>The facts of welfare</h2>
<p>In trotting out these myths, Republican lawmakers are also tapping into long-standing <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/posteverything/wp/2017/12/08/republicans-are-bringing-welfare-queen-politics-to-the-tax-cut-fight/?utm_term=.8d360a5ce417">racist stereotypes</a> about who receives support. For instance, the “<a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2423540">welfare queen</a>” – a code word for an African-American woman with too many children who refuses to work – is a fiction.</p>
<p>The facts of welfare are that most recipients are white, families that receive aid are smaller on average than other families and the program requires recipients to work and is tiny in relation to the overall federal budget – <a href="http://econofact.org/welfare-and-the-federal-budget">about half a percent</a>. Yet, the welfare queen is an archetype invoked to generate public antagonism against the safety net. Expect her to make frequent appearances in the months to come.</p>
<p>Americans should demand fact-based justifications for tax and entitlement reforms. It is time to retire the welfare queen and related tropes that paint needy Americans as undeserving.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/89048/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michele Gilman is affiliated with the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland and the Women's Law Center of Maryland.
</span></em></p>As the GOP prepares to slash spending to pay for tax cuts, lawmakers have been bringing up claims about the poor that don’t stand up to scrutiny.Michele Gilman, Venable Professor of Law, University of BaltimoreLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/800692017-07-05T20:09:50Z2017-07-05T20:09:50ZWhat income inequality looks like across Australia<p>With affordable houses <a href="https://theconversation.com/get-used-to-your-commute-data-confirms-houses-near-jobs-are-too-expensive-77867">increasingly out of reach</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/factcheck-is-wage-growth-at-record-lows-66552">wage growth slow</a> and <a href="http://thenewdaily.com.au/money/finance-news/2017/07/03/australia-debt-new-records/">household debt high</a>, Australians are certainly feeling poor. But how do they compare to their neighbours? New Census data confirms there’s a lot of variability in income. </p>
<p>The Census breaks the country up into 349 geographic regions (named in quote marks below), some of which cover more than one major town and some of which group related suburbs within cities. We examined 331 of these regions, excluding those containing fewer than 1,000 households. </p>
<p>The data show there are high levels of income inequality within these regions. A simple way to measure this is to look at the ratio of income between those who are well off (the top 20% within a region) and of those who are relatively disadvantaged (the bottom 20%) in the Census data. In Australia the weekly household income for the top 20% (A$1,579 per week) is 3.5 times the income of the bottom 20% (A$457).</p>
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<p>The “Melbourne City” region has the most unequal incomes in Australia, where the top 20% have an income that is 8.3 times as high as those in the bottom 20%. “Adelaide City” (ratio of 5.5) and the “Sydney Inner City” (4.8) also have quite high levels of inequality. </p>
<p>Two of the poorest regions in the Northern Territory also have very high inequality. These are the vast region that encircles Darwin, called “Daly, Tiwi, West Arnhem” (ratio of 5.2) and the “East Arnhem” region (5.3).</p>
<p>However, there are regions with varying income levels, that also had relatively low inequality ratios. The region of “Molonglo”, in South Canberra (ratio of 2.2), “West Pilbara” in Western Australia (2.4) and “Kempsey, Nambucca” on New South Wales’ north coast (2.5) all have low levels of inequality.</p>
<p>For our analysis, we used equivalised household income. Equivalisation is a technique in which members of a household receive different weightings, based on the amount of additional resources they need. </p>
<p>The Australian Bureau of Statistics assumes that the first adult in a household has a weighting of 1, each additional adult a weighting of 0.5, and each child a weighting of 0.3. Total household income is then divided by the sum of the weightings for a representative income.</p>
<h2>Incomes across Australia</h2>
<p>For the whole of Australia, the equivalised median household income (the income in the middle of the distribution) is A$878 per week. The region with the lowest median income was “Daly, Tiwi, West Arnhem” in the Northern Territory, at A$510 per week. </p>
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<p>However, several regional areas like “Maryborough, Pyrenees” (northwest of Ballarat in Victoria), “Kempsey, Nambucca” (NSW), “Maryborough” (between Bundaberg and the Sunshine Coast in Queensland), “Inverell, Tenterfield” (in NSW’s Northern Tablelands) and “South East Coast” in Tasmania all had median incomes of A$575 per week or less.</p>
<p>At the other end of the distribution, households in leafy suburbs of North Sydney – “Mosman” (NSW) had a median income of A$1,767 per week. Areas like “South Canberra” (ACT), “Manly” (in Sydney’s east) and the mining-dominated “West Pilbara” (WA) all had median incomes of A$1,674 or more per week.</p>
<p>We also looked at the extremes of the distribution. We define high income as those households with an income of A$1,500 or more per week. This equates to about 22% of the population. We defined low-income households as having an income of less than A$400 per week (about 14% of households).</p>
<p>Around 40% of households in the “Daly, Tiwi, West Arnhem” region were classified as being in poverty compared to around 6% in “North Sydney, Mosman” region. Conversely, around 60% of households in this region were classified as having high income, compared with only 6% of households in “Kempsey, Nambucca”.</p>
<h2>How segregated are we within regions and cities?</h2>
<p>While government policy is often delivered at the regional level, people live their lives at the local or neighbourhood level. However, the relatively disadvantaged and the upper-middle class are often segregated within these regions.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.brookings.edu/book/dream-hoarders/">Richard Reeves of the Brookings Institute argues</a> the segregation of the upper-middle class in Australia means this group “hoards” the benefits in the region they live in. Among the location advantages he lists are: access to the best schools, opportunities to network with the wealthy and powerful and the ability to disproportionately accrue capital gains on housing assets. To avoid this kind of “opportunity hoarding”, the rich and poor would need to be evenly spread within a region. </p>
<p>A simple way to look at this is through a “dissimilarity index”. In essence, this measures the evenness with which two groups are spread across a larger area. It ranges from zero to one, with higher values indicating a more uneven distribution and zero indicating complete mixing.</p>
<p>Looking at the distribution of the high income. Across Australia, the dissimilarity index has a value of 0.27. This means that around 27% of high-income households would have to move neighbourhoods to make the distribution completely even. </p>
<p>This varies quite substantially by region. “Far North” (encompassing Cape York in QLD) has a dissimilarity index of 0.42. “Auburn” (in western suburbs of Sydney, NSW) and “Playford” (on Adelaide’s northern fringe) also have quite large values.</p>
<p>Our richest regions tend to have the most even distribution of the wealthy, with “North Sydney, Mosman”, “Molonglo” and “Manly” having values of 0.06 or less.</p>
<p>“East Arnhem” has a very high level of concentration of low income individuals by neighbourhood, with a dissimilarity index of 0.70. The next two highest regions (“Katherine” and “Alice Springs”) are also in the Northern Territory, with index values of 0.53 and 0.55 respectively. </p>
<p>We can also compare the measures we used, to find out how they relate to each other. The following figure shows that the richest regions tend to be those with the highest level of income inequality. </p>
<p>However, as inequality goes up, there tends to be a greater concentration of low income households by neighbourhood (there’s also less of a concentration of high income households).</p>
<h2>Have and have nots</h2>
<p>It’s true that the level of income mobility is <a href="https://www.cese.nsw.gov.au/publications-filter/income-mobility-in-australia">higher in Australia</a> than it is in the US. However, Australia also has prominent examples of economic policies that disproportionately benefit the upper-middle class, such as the capital gains tax discount and superannuation tax incentives. </p>
<p>Australia also has a geographically concentrated income distribution, with the rich living in neighbourhoods with other rich people. The poor are also more likely to live in close proximity to people who share their disadvantage. </p>
<p>If Richard Reeves is right, and the spatial segregation of high and low income households reinforces inequality across the generations, then policies that encourage the mixing of different social classes in the same neighbourhood and region should be a way forward.</p>
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<p><em>This article was put together with research assistance from Hubert Wu, Australian National University and Harvard University.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/80069/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Census data shows there is income inequality between, but also within, regions of Australia.Nicholas Biddle, Associate Professor, ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences, Australian National UniversityFrancis Markham, Research Fellow, College of Arts and Social Sciences, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/803482017-07-03T14:54:09Z2017-07-03T14:54:09ZWhy the World Bank’s efforts to marshal private capital won’t reduce poverty<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/176746/original/file-20170704-32566-121zahz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">World Bank President Jim Yong Kim is thinking about reinventing the organisation model.
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">REUTERS/Yuri Gripas</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-world-bank-reinvents-itself-and-puts-poverty-reduction-at-risk-79403">planned reinvention </a>of the World Bank may be a mea culpa of sort from the multilateral funding institution. But it is still a bearer of bad news for poor African countries.</p>
<p>The World Bank is looking to migrate from the model that largely relies on member states providing loans for development projects, to one in which it becomes more of a broker of private capital to be invested in development projects. </p>
<p>The World Bank Group President <a href="http://www.lse.ac.uk/website-archive/newsAndMedia/videoAndAudio/channels/publicLecturesAndEvents/player.aspx?id=3802">Jim Yong Kim believes</a> that a sizeable portion of private capital lies idle. With proper steps to eliminate unacceptable risks, this capital can be channelled into funding development in poor countries. </p>
<p>Private investors are generally risk-averse. This means that mountains of idle cash remain largely untapped at the expense of real investments. These could generate jobs and green energy as well as reduce poverty, improve health care and extinguish debts that are haunting countries the world over.</p>
<p>Kim <a href="http://www.lse.ac.uk/website-archive/newsAndMedia/videoAndAudio/channels/publicLecturesAndEvents/player.aspx?id=3802">argues</a> that development finance needs fundamentally to change <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-world-bank-reinvents-itself-and-puts-poverty-reduction-at-risk-79403">in speed and scale</a>, growing from billions of dollars in development aid to trillions in investment.</p>
<p>As Felix Stein from the University of Cambridge and Devi Sridhar from the University of Edinburgh <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-world-bank-reinvents-itself-and-puts-poverty-reduction-at-risk-79403">point out</a>, Kim now believes that there are significant financial resources readily available and sitting on the sidelines of capital markets. They generate little in the way of returns, particularly compared to what they could make if invested in developing countries. Private investors lack knowledge about these countries, and their tendency to remain generally risk-averse means that the funds remain largely untapped. </p>
<p>Kim’s argument amounts to an admission that the Bretton Woods system has failed to address gaps in the global capital markets. And that its institutions – the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank – which were established after the second world war to foster international economic cooperation – have failed to support the world’s developmental needs.</p>
<p>But private sector funding won’t help the situation because the much needed developmental investments in Africa are social in nature. Private investments will also be costly, and as a consequence, exploitative.</p>
<h2>Weaknesses in Bretton Woods institutions</h2>
<p>The Bretton Woods multilateral institutions have been strongly criticised for their corporate led model, which tends to undermine <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/03/world-bank-ifc-fund-luxury-hotels/">social justice</a>. Over the years they have been focusing on profit oriented investments. Many have impoverished people in emerging economies, particularly in Asia and Africa through displacements, large scale privatisation, natural resource looting and environmental degradation. </p>
<p>Aid and loans from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund usually come with strict <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/Sheets/2016/08/02/21/28/IMF-Conditionality">conditions and restrictive policy recommendations</a>. These take away the economic freedom of aid recipients and borrowing countries. They include strict inflation controls, high taxation, large scale privatisations, rapid trade liberalisation and cutting government expenditure on social services. </p>
<p>Conditions on aid and loans usually forfeit states’ authority in governing their own economy, as national economic policies are predetermined under the loan packages. This ultimately shifts regulation of national economies from state governments to the Washington institution in which African developing countries hold little voting power. </p>
<p>The number of emerging countries depending on the World Bank funding has drastically declined over the <a href="http://www.polity.org.za/article/why-africa-should-turn-to-capital-markets-to-fund-its-infrastructure-deficit-2015-12-07">past ten years</a>. This has been mainly due to increasingly attractive alternative sources of financing. The <a href="https://www.pambazuka.org/governance/africa-world-bank-and-imf-increasingly-irrelevant-says-africa-commission">bank has been rendered irrelevant</a> as private capital flows to the developing world have grown on the back of governments issuing sovereign bonds. Its role has gradually become a mere <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/in-a-globalized-world-what-role-for-the-world-bank/2012/03/19/gIQARUhyNS_story.html?utm_term=.d4c190ca146a">aid agency </a>dealing with a smaller group of low-income fragile states,</p>
<p>The new generation of institutions spearheaded by emerging market governments led by China is further threatening the traditional multilateral <a href="https://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2014/11/economist-explains-6">institutions</a>. </p>
<p>This is what lies behind the World Bank’s efforts to reposition itself from being a lender for major development projects relying on funding states, into a broker for private sector investment. This would shift it from being a body that disburses development aid to one that mobilises investment.</p>
<p>But the World Bank’s proposed repositioning will have a number of negative implications on countries in Africa.</p>
<h2>Negative consequences</h2>
<p>First, it will further disadvantage developing nations as most investments in Africa are classified as risky. This means that most investors are unwilling to commit funds for longer time frames. And, given the high risk assessment, borrowing will be expensive. This in turn will push countries further in debt and expose them to exploitation by private lenders.</p>
<p>Second, the repositioning from public to private funding will further cement the World Bank’s business model at the expense of social benefit. This will undermine the role of the state as the primary provider of essential goods and services, such as health care and education. </p>
<p>Last, it will be almost impossible for the bank successfully to mediate between the interests of a global markets system, developing country governments, and people in poverty. This is because projects attractive for private investment are out of the reach of poor people. </p>
<p>There’s no reason to believe that the bank’s envisaged new role will lead to a reduction in poverty. The more likely outcome will be that it once again fails to address international capital market shortcomings.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/80348/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Misheck Mutize does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Africa should be concerned about news that the World Bank is looking to migrate from the model that largely relies on funding member states to become a broker of private capital.Misheck Mutize, Lecturer of Finance and Doctor of Philosophy Candidate, specializing in Finance, University of Cape TownLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.