Blog #11

The movie that stands out in my mind concerning poor working women is Erin Brockovich. This movie details the life of a poor working mother trying to provide for her three children while at the same time do her best at a job she truly loved. The movie starts out showing how difficult her living situation was due to the fact that she was poor, uneducated and had had children had a young age. She struggles to make ends meat and keep a roof over her family’s head which is a constant worry to her. In one scene she finds a huge cockroach in her broken kitchen causing her to reflect on the bad conditions she is putting her children in yet she has no other choice and is doing all she can to get them into a better situation. She starts to work as a secretary at a law firm and stumbles upon a case that interests her so she starts researching it and working longer hours. This causes her to have a miscommunication with her boss and results in a powerful scene when he fires her and you can see her whole world cave in around her because she needs the job so desperately and invested so much time away from her children for it. Her long hours working cause her to rely on a neighbor to watch her children when her primary care arrangement falls through and later she even brings them to work with her at times when she has no other care options. Once Erin receives her job back, she puts many long hours into it due to the nature of the case but also the feelings of accomplishment and worth that her job gives her which she has not received from a job in the past. This results in even more time away from her children which turns into a hard thing for Erin to deal with once she realizes how negatively it is affecting her children yet she continues to work in hopes that her job will soon allow her greater time and economic freedom to spend more time with her children. While in the end Erin wins the big case and starts off towards a path of great accomplishment both personally and economically which pulls her out of the poor working mothers world, her beginnings do show the struggles she must face in the workforce and also the sacrifices to her children she must make in order to get to that point.

Blog #10

I think the most important adaptive survival strategy that Chaudry’s poor working mothers showed was their ability to preserve through all of their setbacks and obstacles. The example that stood out the most to me was Sara and Christina’s story. Sara went from living in the US to moving to Ecuador, back to the US where she unsuccessfully lived with her mother, to living in a homeless shelter and then finally having public housing of her own. Throughout all of these transitions, her main priority was to keep Christina in the day care center she had fought so hard to get her into because it was able to provide her daughter with a stable environment and care which she could not at the time. She did not allow her economic situation to fully control her daughter’s care thus she made sure to keep the child care arrangement she wanted for her daughter despite all of the forces acting against her. She did not give up once she was rejected for public housing or for a different homeless shelter rather she continued to fight for the conditions she wanted and needed. Many of the other mothers discussed their ability to effectively use the bus system in order to get to their jobs and thus keep their jobs despite them lacking their own transportation or the unpredictability of bus schedule changes. Some mothers would take multiple buses and thus it would cause their commute to work to be hours long instead of the mere minutes if they had had their own car. When the mothers got something right in their life, such as a job or a child care arrangement, they would fight against all odds to keep this right in their life especially since welfare reform made it harder for them to get aid in times of need and forced them to work no matter what.

Welfare reform also caused the mothers to be more inventive in piecing together their child care arrangements and open to many different possible arrangements that they might not have initially chosen. Many mothers once again relied on kin care to help care for their children this time as more of a supplement and on an emergency basis. When the mothers work schedule went over the hours that their children could be in their primary care arrangement they would lean on kin to help them out so that they could keep their required job. The mothers did not want to burden their kin or did not feel like their kin was in the best condition to take care of their children yet they knew that they had to accept the help in order for them to hopefully advance their economic future. One mother, Kari allowed for her child to say overnight and sometimes even for a month at a time with her child care provider due to the quality of the care she provided and late hours that Kari worked which made it hard to even find a provider to accommodate such a schedule. When Kari found one she was willing to do anything to keep her child in that care even when her provider went on vacation.

The mothers needed to work but they also needed child care which caused them to chose one as being the central aspect to which all other decisions were made. Some mothers chose work because they had a good job they liked, the pay was good or they could receive lots of hours which caused them to work their child care arrangements around their work. This lead to many switches in arrangements and settling for non-preferred arrangements yet it allowed the mother to have peace of mind that she would be able to provide for her family. Other mothers chose child care as the central part of their life thus they had to find work that was able to fit into their preferred child care arrangements. This lead to mothers having multiple jobs and switching jobs frequently but it allowed for them to have peace of mind that their child was receiving the kind of care that they wanted them to receive.

Throughout the course material, it really depends on how you talk to and what research you believe as to whether welfare reform was successful. In some people’s eyes and research they point to, statistics show how welfare recipients has decreased since the reform was enacted yet there is also evidence that enrollment in other social resources such as food stamps has increased which leads one to believe that more poor people may be off welfare but they are still not able to fully provide for their family. In the eye’s of former welfare recipients, they are able to see how just having a job is not enough to get oneself out of poverty because of the low wages that such jobs offer. They realize that in order for welfare reform to be truly successful it needs to address the other issues to that play into the working poor’s plight such as child care and education. The only real way for the working poor to advance in the job market is to get an education which they cannot achieve without the help of the government by means of scholarship. Chaudry’s women that he interviews prove that working a job is not enough to get oneself out of poverty as there expenses are too great due to their economic status and the resources that are there to help them are too complicated to truly aid them. Welfare reform needs to come in the form of true reform of all the aspects that play into poverty and not just more work at low wage jobs.

Blog #9

First of all, I think it is a remarkable statistic that this data shows that the federal poverty level for a family of four needs to be twice the amount in order for them to adequately live. This research data means that not only is the federal poverty level set low thus excluding multitudes of families who should be considered poor but also it shows the need for more resources for these families that are at or below the federal poverty level since they are not able to adequately provide for their families. Specifically for poor working mothers this data means that they are at a great disadvantage in regards to meeting the needs for their families since the majority of them rely solely on their income and are only able to secure the lowest paid jobs. These disadvantages not only affect them but also their children as they face sacrifices in their life.

One such sacrifice is that they are not covered by health insurance at a higher rate than non-poor children. This lack of health insurance impedes on their health which is important at such a young age as ailments that are not treated can affect them for the rest of their lives causing more hardship. It is also important for them to have health care because the mother’s of these children largely are not able to provide adequate living conditions which causes them to have a higher rate of health issues.

It is also important to notice that immigrant parents are more likely to be poor and thus have children in poor households than non-immigrant parents as well is true for minority parents verses white parents. This data was backed by Chaudry’s sample of poor working mothers as all of them were minorities and talked about their lives in communities filled with minorities. This raises the question about how much race plays into a parents ability to provide for their child and why so many minorities are stuck in poverty in this country.

Blog #8

One problem that is of great concern to the poor working mothers in the middle of “urban poverty” is the fear of crime in their neighborhood that might affect them and their children. The mothers are scared to let their children play outside alone because they fear that they might somehow get involved in the massive amount of crime in their area either as a bystander or as an active participant. In the poverty stricken areas that make up the neighborhoods that these mothers are stuck in, crime is an everyday occurrence that results in many deaths and incarcerations which has a negative effect on the community as a whole because it keeps the people in fear every day. It also causes an increase in single mother households as the rate of male incarceration is higher due to the drug trade which is an added pressure on these mother’s for they have no male support. In mixed income neighborhoods crime is still a problem but it is not as prevalent as there is more of a police presence and action taken against crime due to the different levels of income and their effectiveness to receive the proper help and resources from the police. Poor working mothers in these neighborhoods are able to benefit from the stronger police presence and neighborhood action against crime which helps to lessen their worry and allow their children to benefit from the safer community. Along with the presence of higher incomes comes the added resources to stop crime such as neighborhood watches and community programs that allow for the children to have a safe, constructive environment to hang out in instead of the streets.

Another problem that the poor working mothers must face due to “urban poverty” is the relocation of the middle class and the presence of affluence in their neighborhood. This causes them to become even more distanced from the realization of better conditions for themselves and their families because they no longer have constant reminders of better life conditions. The presence of those that are able to provide a better quality of life gives the poor working mothers a standard to strive for because they are able to see that it is possible for them to get out of the cycle of poverty thus it gives them hope and the ability to continue on their path of self betterment. Being surrounded by those who are worse off than they are only helps the mother’s to feel more hopeless in their situation and they are unable to receive the encouragement and advice that they need to get out of poverty. This also helps to further isolate them from the outside world as their only interactions are those that are inside their community of poverty. This isolation does not allow them to fully take advantage of the resources that can help them because they are unaware of the world outside of their neighborhood. There is little drive to go into the neighborhoods of the “urban poverty” and help its people because of the stigma that all who live in there like and prefer the life they lead with little motivation to change it. Mothers in mixed income neighborhoods are able to see on a daily basis that there is life outside of poverty and that that life is achievable and preferable to the life they are leading. Seeing people of different income levels that are not only above but also below them gives the mothers a gauge of how well they are doing and whether they are succeeding in their drive to provide a better life. Living in a mixed income neighborhood also provides them the ability to interact with different people and resources that can aid them in their times of struggle since community programs to help the working poor are more available in such communities since they are seen as being wanted.

These and other problems that hinder the poor working mothers in “urban poverty” communities also help to increase their concern and worry over their children’s outcome that they feel they have little control over since the community life is so entrenched in their everyday dealings. They do not want their children to grow up the way they did such as dropping out of school or getting pregnant at a very early age but if that is the only life that their children see and experience it makes it hard for the mothers to lead them in a new direction. The mothers work harder and longer in order to provide more for their children which in turn gives them less time with their children to shape their development the way that they want to. Poor working mothers in mixed income communities are able to provide their children with a more diverse outlook on life and the different directions that they can chose. Their children are able to see affluence and destitution allowing for the mothers to give them guidance to follow the path of affluence instead of poverty. The neighborhood brings the mothers and their children a sense of hope as they are not constantly surrounded just by poverty but also by better ways of life that seem achievable and something real they can strive towards.

Blog #7

Jacqueline started out in the care of her father because he was already staying at home and Julia needed quick care since she was starting school in hopes of achieving a better job in the future. She was hesitant due to Jacqueline being only one month old but knew that the sooner she started school the sooner it was going to be able to aid her in her job options. That care ended when Jacqueline was 5 months old due to the dissolution of the relationship between her father and Julia which started Julia into a summer of desperation where she cared for her children while not working due to her waiting on school to start back up again. Once the semester started, Julia’s younger sister moved in with her and provided care for Jacqueline full time while Julia went to school and had a job internship. This care did not last long either as Julia’s sister got a job and started to increase her working hours while Julia could not do the same in fear that her public assistance would be cut off thus leaving her in a worse position financially then she was in at the moment. At this point Julia quit school so that she could care for her daughters while working few hours as she waited for a Work Experience Program which upon finally receiving she was able to take advantage of their child care benefits and get Jacqueline into a family day care. A few months later this care ended due to the programs inability to pay the provider in a timely fashion and also Julia’s inability to pay her until the program was able to figure out the problem. Once again Julia placed Jacqueline in kin care, this time with her cousin, due to the quick ability and her feelings that a family member would be more willing to deal with the late payments. This care fell through as well a few months later as the payments continued to be late or non-existent, so Julia was forced to quit one of her jobs in order to take care of Jacqueline until another family care provider could be found. Julia really like the new provider due to the positive environment she provided in her home and the learning opportunities she gave to Jacqueline. As jobs and need changed, Julia did everything in her power to keep Jacqueline with this provider because she felt that the stable and positive environment she gave to Jacqueline outweighed any extra money or stressors that it caused and because the provider was able to better accommodate Julia’s changing needs for care. As Julia moved through the welfare and work system, she was suddenly stripped of her child care aid which eventually made her stop her relationship with Jacqueline’s provider which Julia did not want to do by any means but had to due to lack of funds thus she went back to kin care this time in the form of her ailing mother. Julia and Jacqueline were both upset by this break with the provider but were left with no other choice but to leave their preferred care due to lack of money and hours flexibility. The major factor that contributed to Julia’s need to switch child care arrangements, even when she did not want to, was the need for money to pay for child care but also to survive.

Minimum wage greatly effects poor working mothers to find and maintain stable, affordable, preferred child care because they are stuck in the catch-22 of the welfare system. If they make more money then they are cut off from public assistance which despite their small pay increase is still greatly needed in order to provide their children with adequate care yet if they make less than minimum wage they are stuck using whatever care they can find while not being able to save money or make their way up the pay scale due to their low end job or no job. The women in the videos show that minimum wage is not enough to provide their family with a better life because all of their time is spent working long hours in order to receive their meager pay checks that are barely able to get them the necessitates of life. They are not allowed anything other than the basic needs of living and feel bad for not being able to provide their children with more things that would better their life like school supplies and better schooling. One of the women goes hungry sometimes so that she has enough food to feed her children which only helps to weaken her beyond the long, tiring hours she is putting into work. They feel hopeless because it seems that no matter how hard they work they are getting nowhere because their checks are barely able to support them and their families, leaving no money for savings towards emergencies or a better future.

Blog #6

The first type of child care use that many of the mothers’s used outside of their own care was kin care which was characterized by some type of kin such as the father, grandmother, aunt, etc of the child watching the child for little or no money. This care was used the most because it was relatively easy to secure on such short notice due to the mother’s need to get back to work in order to provide money to pay for “real” child care. This type of care was also the shortest in its duration due to the kin becoming unable to further care for the child and also the mother’s acknowledgement that they child was not being cared for in an environment that was conducive to their development. Mothers wanted their children to be cared for but also to be stimulated in their environment in hopes that it would later benefit them once they started school and would allow them to be successful in that environment. A few of the mothers promoted kin care because they were sure of the type of environment that their child was in which was very important to them because they knew they could trust their child care provider and knew that their child was receiving the type of love and care they would have provided them with. Most mothers got their children out of kin care as soon as they could but continued to use it as a quick form of secondary care that they could rely on and be secure with in the short term.

The next type of child care for many of the mothers was with an in home provider who was either licensed or unlicensed but who made child care their occupation. The rate and duration of mothers using this type of care all centered around how they felt about the provider and the type of environment they could provide for their child. Some mothers did not feel comfortable with leaving their child in the home of a stranger especially when they could still rely on the use of kin care. Other mothers preferred the use of home providers if they were able to chose one that they felt would provide added structure and care that the child would not be able to receive from kin care. This was the view of Annette who was able to find providers who she felt were properly equipped and trained to care for her son while also providing him with a learning environment. While it may take a mother a few tries to find the right provider for them that they felt comfortable with, such was the case for Yolanda who stopped care with one provider upon her son getting constant diaper rashes, she was able to find a provider that she was more than happy with due to her caring demeanor. Finally some of the mothers received such a bad taste in their mouths from disagreements with home providers to missed expectations that they preferred to send their child to formal day care centers.

Formal day care centers were used mostly for children aged three and older because by that time many mothers felt that it was important for their child to start receiving the interactions and structure that these centers provided in anticipation to get their child prepared to start school. The mothers expected that these centers would be more equipped to provide proper care to their children due to the facilities and resources that they had at their disposal. They also felt that it was important for their child to have positive interactions with other kids their age so that they would be able to better succeed in school since they were used to being around other kids and taking orders from a teacher figure. Most of the mothers had a very hard time getting their children into such centers due to age restrictions and long waiting lists which was disheartening for many of the mothers who preferred this care due to its feeling of security and safely for their child compared to the other types of care.

Between all of the different types of care that the mothers used for their children the underlying factors in their decision making had to do with availability and cost rather than the more important factors of quality of care and security. All together the mothers had varying and valid reasons for why they preferred a certain type of care yet many were unable to provide their child with that type of care as they could not afford it or it was not available to them. Many of the mothers struggled with getting the monetary aid they were entitled to from the government only to then not receive the aid in a timely manner which then defeated the purpose as they were not able to effectively use it and had to settle for less expensive care which many times was not the care they preferred. Other mothers struggled to by past or get through the long waiting lists that accompanied the top choice of care such as the Head Start program which was seen as a very safe and educational thus preferred type of care causing mothers to once again settle for lesser care. The bottom line was that instead of mother’s feelings towards a care arrangement being the deciding factor in whether their child went there or not, it was money, and actually the lack there of, that decided where and how a child was cared for. Mothers only want the best for their child and when they cannot provide the best or even the second or third best for them it is a very defeating feeling for them and a negative experience for the child.

Blog #5

Chaudry’s main argument throughout the book is that by promoting more work as the only answer to how to get families off poverty is absurd when you look at all of the expenses and politics that are involved in their life in order to work. All of the families that he interviews and chronicles throughout the book have nothing against working hard and would prefer to work due to the feelings of self-worth and accomplishment that it gives them yet they are discouraged from working by lack of child care and the red tape of the very government programs that are supposed to help them not hinder them. The reasons that the mothers chose not to work center around the lack of quality, affordable child care which is important to them because they want their children to be safe and in a positive environment followed by the added stress and paperwork mess that getting off welfare causes them as they are striped of most of their financial aid. These are not reasons that focus on them being lazy or not willing to work hard, in fact the mothers work very hard at various different jobs and job trainings in order to provide all that they can for their families, but they are hampered by forces that not only cause negative effects on them but their children too.

The children born into these families are hindered by their poor economic situations in many different ways such as medical, educational and relational. Medically theses children are hindered because of the poor health conditions some of them live in leading to illnesses that cannot readily be cured and also due to some of their special conditions that do not receive the proper care such as asthma. Educationally these children suffer due to the lack of attention that their cognitive development receives which makes it very hard for these children to receive timely diagnose and treatment in order for them to fully develop and thus be able to have a successful school career. Relationally many of these children miss out on developing a proper and early attachment to their own mother since she is working so many hours away from them and also the constant moving from care arrangement to care arrangement does not allow them to form a proper attachment to anyone who can be stable in their lives. All of these effects of their economic situations have such negative outcomes in the lives of these children who will grow up and be a part of the public and that is why it is important for the public at large to have a sense of responsibility to them in order to break the cycle of such negative effects. Most of the public do have this sense of responsibility to the working poor as can be seen in the videos where most of the people’s answers to the working poor are not that they need to work harder but center around raising minimum wage and providing more jobs for them. They do not play a blame game onto the working poor because for the most part they understand that they are working very hard but that there are other reasons that keep them in poverty, reasons that the public is aware of but that they do not know how to fix or do not care enough to demand change so they let the government handle the problems in any way they see fit. Working harder is not going to help the working poor near as much as the public coming to their aid by advocating for them and creating an environment where they can effectively work their way out of poverty without having to sacrifice their lives or their children’s lives.