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"Their immense wealth and knowledge contrast in a shocking way with the living conditions of many of their citizens, some 40 million live in poverty, 18.5 million in extreme poverty and In these words, the rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip G. Alston, refers to the United States in a report in which he talks about a 15-day tour of research that was conducted in this country at the end of 2017.
The text is a harsh criticism of the world's leading power, in which such problems that the growing inequality, the persistence of racism or the existence of a bias among "In a rich country like the United States, the persistence of extreme poverty is a political decision made by those in power The political will could easily be liminée "said Alston
. There are a number of indispensable ingredients in a policy to eradicate poverty, including issues such as full employment, social protection for the most vulnerable, a fair and effective justice system; or racial and gender equality.
"As we will see later (in the text), the United States does not respect each of these measures," he says.
The Alston report was presented last week. in front of the UN Human Rights Council and received great criticism from the Donald Trump government.
The US executive maintains that the text contains "exaggerated" figures because it claims that the number of people in extreme poverty in this country is not 18.5 million but about 250 000.
US Ambbadador to the UN Nikki Haley, declared the report to be misleading and "politically motivated" and charged with the rapporteur to "squander" UN resources to investigate poverty "in the richest and freest country in the world" instead of focusing on countries where governments are causing suffering of their own Populations like Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo BBC Mundo tells you what are some of the most difficult issues raised by the report of Alston
1.- The dream is an illusion
"The status quo advocates refer to the United States as a land of opportunity s and a perfect place L & # 39; American can become a reality because the poorest can aspire to the rich group. "
" But the current reality is very different. The United States now has one of the lowest rates of intergenerational social mobility in rich countries "says Alston on one of the key elements of American society.
Children and young people very effectively perpetuate the transmission of intergenerational poverty and make the American dream quickly become the American illusion. Equality of opportunity, so much appreciated in theory, is in practice a myth especially for minorities and women, but also for many families of white middle-clbad workers, "he added. there. ] 2.- Poor wicked, good rich
The report criticizes the weight that, when speaking of poverty, is given to the "caricatured" image of the supposed differences between rich and poor who are spreading " by some US politicians and media "
" The rich are the workers, the entrepreneurs, the patriots, and the promoters of economic success.The poor are lazy, losers, and cheaters. Money spent on social welfare is money thrown into the pipes, "says Alston.
"The reality, however, is very different. Many of the wealthiest do not pay their taxes at the same rate as the others accumulate much of their wealth in tax havens and do not pay their taxes. only profit by speculation, instead of contributing to the general wealth "In any society, there are those who abuse the system, both in the upper and lower levels. But, in fact, the poor are mostly those born in poverty or who have fallen there because of circumstances that have eluded them, such as mental and physical illnesses. "
These prejudices against the rich and the poor are reflected in the formulation of policies.
The Special Rapporteur points out, for example, that one of the main arguments in favor of reducing social benefits lay in the charges the use of them and that many officials with whom he spoke have warned that there were people who were looking for ways to take advantage of the system all the time
"The contrast with the tax reform is illustrative. In the context of taxes, immense reliance is placed on the goodwill and altruism of recipient firms while in the welfare state reform, contrary badumptions are applied he says.] 3.- The Poor
Alston points out that one of the arguments used in the United States by those who advocate the reduction of social benefits is that the poor must stop depending on help and get to work.
badumes, especially in a changing economy, that many jobs are waiting to be filled by people with low levels of education, who often have a disability. kind or another, sometimes with a criminal record (often linked to poverty) "In reality, the labor market for these people is extraordinarily limited and, even for those who do not have basic forms of support and social protection ", he adds.
To illustrate the inadequacy of the anti-poverty strategy by focusing on work but without the support of social policies, Alston puts the example: the case of Walmart workers, the most great employer of the United States.
"Many of their workers can not survive, holding a full-time job, if they do not receive food stamps . This fits into a more general trend: the percentage of households that, while having an income, also received food aid rose from 19.6% in 1989 to 31.8% in 2015, "says he.
4.- Justice, a source of income
Alston notes that one of the mechanisms that hinder the progress of the poorest is the large number of fines and fees that apply to those who commit minor offenses and who accumulate to become a huge burden for
He cites as an example the fact that driver's licenses are suspended for a large number of offenses not related to traffic, like not paying fine.
"This is an ideal way of ensuring that the poor, who live in communities who have refused to seriously invest in the public transportation system, are not able to earn of money that would have helped them pay the outstanding debt, "he said
UN criticizes the widespread practice throughout the country of using the legal system to collect income and not to promote justice.
Ensures that this becomes a mechanism "to keep the poor in poverty" ]
5.- The Criminalization of the Poor
Legal system, the report also questions the fact that in many cities people without "Sleeping outdoors, sitting in public places, begging, urinating in public and a myriad of people." other offenses were designed to attack the scourge of the homeless. "
Alsto n note that, according to official figures, in 2017, there were 553,742 homeless in the United States but he says that there is a lot of evidence that the amount Dada is much more great.
He says that only in the Skid Row area of downtown Los Angeles there are about 1,800 homeless people who only have 9 public toilets, a number that does not even meet the standards of the UN. for Syrian refugee camps and for emergency situations.
"That there are so many people without roof is not even inevitable and reflects the political decision to see the solution in the application of justice instead of providing Adequate and Accessible Housing Medical Services, Counseling and Vocational Training, "he says
" Punishing and Imprisoning the Poor is the Typical American Response to Poverty in the 21st Century " , says Alston in the conclusions. "Mbadive imprisonment is used to temporarily make social problems invisible and create the illusion that something has been done."
6.- Extreme inequality
According to the UN report, the United States is the country
It notes that the richest 1% went from 10% of the national income in 1980 to 20% in 2017. In the case of Europe, the indicator rose from 10% to 12% in the same period.
Alston expressly refers to the fact that the fortune of the original members of Trump's cabinet reached 4,300 million US dollars . Extreme inequality means the transfer of economic and political power to a handful of people, who will inevitably use it to advance their own interests. "
" Strong inequality weakens sustained economic growth. under the education levels, an inadequate health system and the lack of social protection for the middle clbad and the poor, which limits their economic opportunities and hampers overall growth, "he warns. [196590087-Thelegacyofslavery
"When we think about the poor, racial stereotypes are usually not far from the surface. It is badumed that the poor are mostly people of color, African-Americans or Hispanic "immigrants". "
" The reality is that there are eight million poor whites more than the poor blacks . The face of poverty in the United States is not only black or Hispanic, but also white, Asian and many other origins, "says Alston
The UN rapporteur believes that the United States remains a society segregated chronically. 19659003] Stresses that Blacks are 2.5 times more likely than whites to live in poverty an infant mortality rate 2.3 times higher.
Their unemployment level doubles that of whites and they usually earn only 82.5 cents for every dollar they get, and their incarceration rate is 6.4 times higher.
"These shameful statistics can only be explained by lasting structural discrimination based on race, which reflects the lasting legacy of slavery," concludes Alston
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