Global Uprising: Global Uprising.

Shirley Baboolal


                                                     Poverty




In society today, people have the concept that the poor are those who wear rags, those who live in  the ghetto, people who beg on the street and those who depend on welfare and handouts. Some years ago Singing Sandra sang a calypso which speaks of the poor are those people who lives in the ghetto. The next year in the calypso competition, Pink Panther knocked her by singing that he visited the ghetto and he saw people with direct TV, cable, internet smart phones, brand names and more.
   Consider this.... The upper middle class - They purchase homes and beach houses for weekends and summer and employ large numbers of servants. the rich upper class gentlemen devotes substantial time to leisure activities, in order to show that one did not have to work to maintain one's lifestyle.
         The middle class - middle middle, consists of industrialists and merchants, physicians and attorneys. they live comfortable, but lack the immense wealth of the upper crust.
           The lower middle class - consists of independent shop keepers, small businessmen, small manufacturing shop owners, white collar employees, travel salesmen, bookkeepers, store managers, government clerks, elementary school teachers and dentists. They own no property. they are fiercely committed to preserve the distinction between members of the lower class, wearing suits and ties when they were not necessary. they consider themselves upward mobile and hope to join the upper class by accumulating wealth. Food was the largest budgetary for the middle class. they don't own homes, they rent.
           The working class - physical labour consists of skilled and semi-skilled workers, domestic servants, etc.
      Can you think for one moment that even though people are employed in well-paying jobs that they could be in a state of poverty. If you look at the lower middle class, they own no property, they have to pay rent as they don't own homes and the cost of living is so high that after paying rent and meeting household needs, e.g. groceries, school books clothing other necessities they barely are left with money and they will have to do extra jobs or band their bellies in order to make ends meet. Isn't this a state of poverty?