HOW TO HELP IMPROVE THE LIVES OF THE POOR

Poverty is a major issue in the world and should be solved as quickly as possible. However for that to happen, all of us need to work hard to help the poor. There are a variety of practical ways you can contribute to alleviating poverty. There are two approaches;

HELPING THE POOR THROUGH DIRECT ACTION

EDUCATE YOURSELF: There are many ways that poverty is linked to reproductive rights, to workers' rights, to environmental justice. By educating yourself you will figure out where your time and energy is best spent in helping the impoverished gain the skills and the power they need to help themselves.

There is a good deal of research that shows how the cycle of poverty is linked to the criminal justice system, which does little to re-educate its felons. Especially in a country like the U.S. the downward spiral of prisoners fuels their poverty and is a system that must change. This toxic feedback loop is especially difficult for people of colour, who are already usually disenfranchised by poverty and the structure of society.

Reproductive rights are linked to poverty. Access to reproductive control, especially for women, means fewer children, which typically links to higher education and higher opportunities for work. Reproductive health programs mean fewer teenage pregnancies and better education for women.

DONATE: Donations to your local and global organizations are incredibly important. Many of these organizations rely on donations to survive and serve their communities. Make sure you know where your money is going, if you're donating money. You want to be sure that the organization is actually helping people.

Make a pledge to give up some treat for a month (like fancy coffee, or chocolate, or clothes shopping) and use the money that you save to donate to a local or global charity or non-profit. Other than money you can donate food, clothing, toiletry items, old furniture, toys and books to local shelters and programs. These donations help people in straitened circumstances.

There are a variety of books for prisoners programs in various cities. See if your city or town has one. If not, maybe try to start one. Making sure that prisoners are getting the education they need (and often, have been denied) will help them to become productive members of society rather than stuck in the criminal justice system for the rest of their life.

VOLUNTEER: There are tons of ways to help out in your community through direct action. Ask at your local religious organization, or non-profit. Check out programs at your local library and see if they need assistance. There are many different groups that you can work with: children, the elderly, the mentally ill, the homeless, and women. You'll need to decide which group you want to focus on.

You can do things like teach a course in resume development, computer skills. You could start up a local community garden and teach courses on how to grow sustainable food. A large number of people who are poor cannot afford to buy much produce, so teaching them a sustainable and cheap way to grow their own food, could help alleviate some of that vitamin deficiency. You can work in shelters, soup kitchens, community centres, at after-school programs, and employment centres.

HELP AN INDIVIDUAL: Even helping one individual can make a small change for the better. If you see someone who needs help, talk to them. Give them some money, even a few dollars can help. Offer your help without being condescending or judgmental. Try to help them find a place like a shelter or a soup kitchen.

Ignoring the poverty around you, or making judgement calls about the people in poverty, is a surefire way to do nothing to help. You don't know how that person got into poverty and you don't know what they are going to use their money for.

HELPING THE POOR THROUGH ACTIVISM

START OR JOIN AN ORGANIZATION: Gather like-minded individuals and pick something to do with poverty to work to alleviate. Start up a group to help educate community members on poverty, or create an after-school program for low-income kids. Use your group to havea benefit concert. Put flyers around your town or city and try to get the local paper to cover it. Have the proceeds to towards helping people in your community.

Start a petition in your community to help low-income students have more nutritious food, or to make your school system adopt a better sex-education program. Programs like Results and Children's Defence Fund. Work locally and globally to support legislation and practices that particularly help children to overcome poverty.

TAKE LEGISLATIVE ACTION: Get involved in your local government and in your country's government. Pay attention to laws and bills that are being passed that impact programs to help people who are impoverished.

Support a health care system that protects and helps the people who are part of it. Many people, especially in the U.S. are forced into poverty because of a medical situation that they cannot afford.

Support better education for your community and your country. Better education means people who have the life skills and the knowledge that help them realize their full potential and to become productive, interested members of their communities.

HELP CREATE A DIALOGUE ABOUT POVERTY: Simply opening up discussion in your local community, and on a global scale, can help work towards alleviating it. Challenge your friends and family's assumptions about poverty. Write a column for your local newspaper, or a letter to the editor, outlining what needs to be done in your community to help people who are poor.

TIPS: If you can donate the price of one square food meal per week (about N1,000), that amounts to more than N60,000 per year. Donate items rather than money.

WARNINGS: Don't judge people who are in poverty. There are so many ways to fall into that hole and not be able to escape, encompassing but not limited to health problems, psychological problems, addiction, abuse, and many more.

Source: wikihow