The Motel Kids of Orange County - Assignment Example

Living in the motel makes life hard for the kids. They have barely enough food to survive. Families have no choice but to cramp up in one motel room. They have to find toys from dumpsters. The adults of such families work but their salary is so small that they cannot afford an apartment or to pay the rent. This situation puts such kids into a dire situation at a very early age in their lives. The contrast is so saddening that from Orange County, these children can see the fireworks of Disney Land. It is an extremely cruel lesson for a child teaching them the difference between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’. Living in a motel room is a constant reminder to these kids that they do not have a proper home. The kids have to face the torture of not having a home and not having enough money. In the documentary, a girl gets sick in the stomach, and his father could not visit her because he did not have the gas money.

When these children look at other happy kids going to Disney Land, it has a damaging impact on their socio-emotional development. They would grow up hating society and the system. These children are vulnerable to negative thoughts. They are also constantly reminded of their poor life quality. Fireworks at Disney Land compared to their small space in a cheap motel room. Luxurious food services in part of the city while they have barely enough to survive. Physically, they might be weaker and undernourished compared to other children. One girl in the documentary gets sick, and her father cannot come to take care of her because he does not have money to pay for the bus or buy gas. Under such dire circumstances, it is highly likely for these children to be angry, depressed, frustrated, and sad. These emotions greatly hamper cognitive abilities. They might also be uninterested in their school and homework because they have many problems to face on a daily basis. Moreover, their socio-emotional development is also under threat from hostile neighborhoods. These kids have to spend a lot of time on the streets where there are drug dealers, gangs, and thugs.

The first solution is to raise the minimum wage. If working parents cannot afford an acceptable lifestyle despite working then there is something wrong with the money system. Second, the necessary facilities like school, food, and medicine should be free. This approach is idealistic but possible. Healthcare and education should not be an industry. Companies would open pharmacies and clinics to make money. It is the government’s job to think of the poor people of its society. The people at the bottom of the social pyramid are stuck in the cycle of making money for the next meal. How can they raise their living standards if they are trapped in earning money to pay bills? Maybe, all of these cannot be provided immediately to the poor segment of the country but a step on the right course would be a good start.