Many Americans think that a good work ethic is all that is needed to escape poverty, and that if we gave more poor people assistance they would take advantage of it because they are lazy and have lower moral values. Others think that poor people really want a job but can’t find one.
Those were the findings of 1,000 Americans who were surveyed online in The Salvation Army’s 2012 Report to America about the Perceptions of Poverty.
Here is what the survey revealed:
49% – A good work ethic is all you need to escape poverty
47% – If we gave more people assistance, they would take advantage of it
43% – Poor people really want a job but can’t find one
29% – Poor people have lower moral values
27% – Poor people are lazy
1 in 6 Americans live in poverty and 38-46% of Americans have received help at some point in their life. If you want to hear the story of a hard-working American who fell in to needing public assistance because a black widow spider bite left her unable to work for a period of time, listen to my podcast “Driven to Poverty by Illness”. The attitudes my caller encountered were shocking!
Joan Jerkovich, BCCSend Joan Your Life Coaching Question Anonymously!
