Those who are living below the poverty line have always faced criticism from both politicians and the public. While there are many proposed causes of poverty, those who rely on the government’s assistance to get by are often perceived as “not hardworking enough” or simply “lazy.” Last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2018 estimates, 38.1 million Americans lived in poverty. As many as 17.3 million of them lived in deep poverty, with incomes below 50% of the poverty threshold. Yet, instead of receiving appropriate support, these people are often told to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. Or get a better paying job. Or two jobs. If only it were that easy.
Recently, Twitter user @KeziyahL went viral for highlighting how unfair and unreasonable it is to blame people in need for their own struggles, instead of offering help. You wouldn’t say that to a billion-dollar company struggling to keep itself afloat during the coronavirus crisis, would you? Well, that’s exactly what she did, with the purpose of showing how ridiculous it would sound. https://www.boredpanda.com/boeing-satire-response-people-in-need/