Joslyn Stevens

Enough is enough! What is happening economically to the American people is unbelievably outrageous and criminal. 46.5 million people live below the federal poverty level while the government continues to waste billions on surveillance, wars, and gutting crucial social welfare programs. At the same time no meaningful discussions are being had about how to address poverty in America by ending and redirecting the unnecessary corporate welfare that is contributing to our economic ruin.

How can the working poor climb out of poverty when the federal minimum wage is stuck at $7.25/hr and the tipped minimum wage is at $2.13/hr? The $10.10/hr members of congress have proposed is still not enough to significantly help alleviate poverty and is a pathetic attempt to appear as though they give a damn about the working class. That congress has raised the minimum wage only three times in 30 years speaks volumes about where their priorities lie.

Jobs with Justice presented this map showing states which have increased their minimum wages effective January 1st, 2014 and by how much. The increases, 10 cents for Montana, Arizona, and Ohio, would be laughable if there weren’t millions of people in desperate need of and dependent on such a paltry amount to get by especially single mothers.

The liberal and conservative default talking point for escaping poverty is to get an education and work hard. What about those of us who did go to college but dropped out because we could no longer afford tuition or those of us who obtained a degree but can’t find jobs in our field? What about those of us who are forced to spend less time with our kids because we’re putting in overtime at work or working more than one job and still can’t afford enough food for the month and have to worry about utility shut off and eviction notices? What are you supposed to do when you have a degree and work hard but your employer refuses to pay a living wage or offer sick pay and your government refuses to step in and represent you? Work harder? Get more degrees? Play the lottery?

One of America’s worst corporate offenders by far is Walmart. How in the hell does a socially and economically irresponsible global corporation averaging $405 billion annually, continue to legally receive tax breaks and subsidies from taxpayers while also burdening them with subsidizing their employees’ living expenses? What’s worse is the poor to don’t have the luxury of boycotting Walmart because they need to make their dollars stretch and save money and that in turn enables Walmart’s corrupt practices and hurts small businesses Keeping wages low is about keeping business owners rich and the working class dependent on government assistance which makes sense considering criminal enterprise and TARP welfare recipient JP Morgan Chase profits greatly from fees to process food stamp debit cards, $5.47 billion in 2010.

The audacity and arrogance of President Obama to discuss income inequality as “the defining moment of our time” after everything he’s done to enable the corruption of Corporate America at our expense since day one is beyond galling. Along with his continued war crimes and other unconstitutional acts, there could not be a better case for his impeachment and removal from office. The bipartisan blame game and never-ending excuses for not being able to do more to help struggling Americans is as old and tired as the baby boomers who won’t be able to retire because government and Wall Street have stolen their pensions and are now coming for their Social Security. Congress needs to accept responsibility for their complicity in not prosecuting white-collar crime and unnecessarily increasing our national debt.

A living wage of at least $15/hr and restoring SNAP and other slashed benefits are the first serious steps to curbing poverty to give people a chance to get out. It’s time to raise hell at the polls in favor of third-party candidates who don’t answer to Big Business because at the end of the day the only ones suffering are those of us who fund the government and make this country run, the working poor.

Joslyn Stevens © joslynstevens.com. Permission is granted for reprint in print, email, blog, or web media if this credit is attached and the title remains unchanged. Joslyn is a writer, photojournalist, and activist specializing in poverty and politics. She resides in Utah and can be reached via twitter @joslynstevens and by email at
joslyn@joslynstevens.com