New Mexico as among the Poorest States in the United States - Research Paper Example

Why New Mexico is poor and what should be done New Mexico is among the poorest s in the United s and plenty ofstudies have been conducted to make an assessment of why this state is in this position. The most critical rates of poverty within this state can be found within the Native American reservations, which many attribute to the neglect of the federal government. Many of the people who live within these reservations state that they often feel forgotten because of their status as Native Americans. Perhaps the reason for this neglect is because of the fact that the United States government feels that it has done enough for the Native Americans and that it is not obligated to do more to improve their lives. One would even go further and state that the American government has chosen to keep the Native American areas of New Mexico at bay because it feels that they are more trouble than productive members of American society. This neglect has brought about a negative stigma within the populations where poverty in the state is most prevalent and this has led many of the individuals involved to give up hope of working towards the ending of their own poverty. The poor residents of New Mexico have little political voice and this may account for their being left out of the mainstream American way of life as they continue to sink deeper into poverty. In fact, the suicide rates among the residents of this state are actually quite high and this is often due to the loss of hope in improving their own lives. The political neglect of the people of this state is so great that their problems are not even highlighted during campaigns, and this has ensured that the area in which they live has become an unappealing location for growing businesses to set up base in. the negative stigma caused by the poverty of the state has made it the least attractive place for those professionals, such as doctors and teachers, to work. This has created a situation where the state even lacks the most qualified professionals who would help to improve not only its health system but also the education of its children. The fact that people are discouraged from working in the area creates a dilemma, because with low quality of education and health care that results, there also develops the problem of high unemployment rates and coupled with low healthcare, the poverty is made even worse within the population. Considering the absence of public and private investment in the neglected areas of the state, better communication between the State and tribal governments, and more consideration to the requirements of the people of these areas, the poverty rate is estimated to upsurge (Kusel). While this may be a fact, it is also true that there are many underlying causes of the rampant poverty within the state and some of these shall be considered in greater detail. The causes of poverty in New Mexico have to be understood in order for decisions to be made on how to remedy them and bring the state into prosperity. Page-Reeves (33) states that New Mexico has the 13th highest rate of food insecurity in the United States and is related to the state of Mississippi as among the states with the highest poverty rates. It has further been seen that one in every four children within the state do not know where they will get their next meal, and this is a source of concern for the strategic planners of the state (Ramirez). Because of the arid nature of the state, there has developed the need for distributing food to the poor and this has led to the setting up of more than 600 emergency food distribution sites that serve more than forty thousand people every week. In some parts of the states, it has been estimated that quite a large number of the population did not have the required meals in a day to remain healthy. Because of the chronic poverty which has been made worse because of the lack of opportunity within the state, an approximate of 17,000 people in New Mexico are homeless, and these, for instance, include five thousand children in the Albuquerque public school system who do not have a place to live. Despite the fact that most people in New Mexico are aware that their state is rated as among the poorest in the nation, they are often shocked to learn the magnitude of the statistics showing this poverty (Arellanes). Among some of the worst affected areas are the Native American reserves which often see a complete lack of the basic enough food to sustain the population. The fact that many of these reserves are situated in arid areas means that they cannot be self-sufficient in their production of food and this has meant that the population has had to find alternatives on how to gain their food. Since many of the youth in these reserves are unemployed, it has become a problem for them to acquire food for themselves and this might explain why they often get involved in crime out of desperation. The expansion of public understanding of the everyday impact of poverty is an important step for generating public support to improve the lives of New Mexicans who often have to struggle a great deal to ensure that they have the food to feed their families as well as a roof over their head. While this idea may be popular in some circles, it is still quite difficult to achieve because of the fact that the media has often created a disproportionate picture of the real situation facing the people of New Mexico. Furthermore, the media attempt to explain the existence of poverty in this state in a way which lack understanding, and does not factor in the lack of investment as well as its geography as the main causes of this poverty. New Mexico is a semi arid state which is often faced with a persistent lack of water, the lack of which has come to contribute significantly to the continuing rise in poverty within its population. Li, et al (10) states that considering that the place is either arid or semi-arid, it is highly deficient of recurrently available surface water resource, and this has created a situation where it has become extremely difficult to conduct farming activities, which sustain the economic efficiency of other states. It has been found that the groundwater resources within the state are used beyond their capacity to be naturally recharged, and most surface water resources are used to the maximum, further adding to the chronic shortage of water. It has also been found that the quality of groundwater differs extensively as a result of pollution, as well as ordinary incidence, water in some areas is too saline or has high points of natural uranium or fluoride. This has become an extreme health risk within the New Mexican population because the consumption of such contaminated water is likely to lead to the development of unwanted health problems. Considering the approximately four thousand miles of unceasingly flowing rivers and streams in New Mexico, 92% are contaminated by nonpoint sources of pollution. Numerous critical water issues have come to develop especially along the New Mexico-Mexico border as a result of the extremely important issue of water availability, usage, and quality (Gutzler and Nims 1777). This has been coupled by the fact that the population of the state is continuously growing and the increasing need of this population for water has become crucial in the overall strategic planning for the state’s future. If this problem is not taken care of within the next few years, then the chronic water shortage (Barringer) in the state will make its environment almost unbearable to live in, hence and increase in the economic weakness of the state. Levy et al (199) conducted studies to create an understand concerning the causes underlying disparities in care between Hispanics and non-Hispanic seniors in New Mexico and to develop health interventions that will decrease these disparities. These disparities seem to have originated because of the differences in access to medical care between the poorer Hispanic population and the better off white population. It has been found that the state of New Mexico carries with it huge disparities in the provision of health care since many of the poorer population barely have the necessary health care to keep them going. The fact that many of the New Mexican population are unable to afford basic health care has been a problem within the state and has led to the demoralization of the health care practitioners. It has been found that because of the unequal access to medical care, many medical practitioners prefer operating from the state’s cities which have a better chance of having medical care facilities that make a comfortable working environment. In addition, the fact that some of the areas within the state have been neglected by the government has led to some part of the population suffering from lack of health care. It is important to note that the lack of health care as a result of a lack in investment in proper health facilities is one of the main contributors to the development of poverty in the state and more needs to be done to address this issue before the problem gets out of control. The economic hardships that quite a significant number of New Mexicans are facing have become so dire that it has become an unavoidable political discussion. The things which these people have to go through on a daily basis are so disturbing that many have come to call for both the state and federal governments to take action to improve these people’s lives. It has become common knowledge that some people in New Mexico have to do without even the most basic needs and the situation has become so bad that it has become difficult for them to even maintain a decent living. The fact that quite a number of the population is unemployed means that they are having trouble living in decent homes and many have had no other choice than going to live in informal houses. These houses lack even the most basic necessities such as water which the majority of Americans take for granted (Clarke 36). Since the state is arid, the access to water for these people is often quite rare and they have to travel long distances in order to get it because piped water cannot be brought into their informal settlements. One would even go as far as to suggest that these people live in far worse conditions than those in developing countries and this situation is quite a shame considering that they are in the richest nation on earth. There are certain communities within the state where emergency vehicles or school buses are not able go into because the roads are in such a bad state. It is certain that New Mexico is a state which has huge potential for developing into one of the wealthiest states in America but this has to be accompanied by political goodwill in order to be made into a reality. One of the main reasons why there are high rates of poverty within the state is the fact that many of the potential investors tend to be discouraged by the climatic conditions of this state. The aridity of New Mexico has been seen as a hindrance to its development and has led to many professionals seeking opportunities elsewhere. In order to recover from this, the state has to invest heavily in the development of new sources of safe water for the population to use (Roepke). This water can also be used for irrigation, which would enable the state to put as much of its land under cultivation as possible, and this will ensure that the state is food sufficient. The recent discovery of uranium deposits within the state boundaries can be considered to be an added advantage because the sales that the government will make of it will ensure that it has enough funding for its projects to eliminate poverty from the population of the state. The state government should work towards providing professionals with the incentives to occupy the vacant professional positions within the state so that there can be an improvement on the service delivery to the population. When considering the level of education within the state, the government should invest in ensuring that only the best teachers are employed in schools because it is these who will encourage the New Mexican students to take their academics seriously enough to excel in them. With a good education, it would be easy for the various individuals to not only escape their poverty but to also come back and help improve the lives of their fellow members of society. Teachers, for example are to be provided with the necessary incentives, such as competitive salaries, for them to want to teach, and not only should this be done, bur their positions should also be accorded enormous respect. The same treatment should be accorded to all those professionals in other relevant fields so that they can find the working environment within the state attractive. This ensures that more well trained leaders in their fields of study end up being attracted to working in the diverse professions within the state. Moreover, the state government should work towards creating avenues for attracting potential investors into the state because with more investments will come more job openings, and this will certainly lead to a reduction in the unemployment levels. One of the ways through which the state can be made productive so that the standards of living also improve is by studying other countries which have had much success in turning their deserts into productive zones. Among the best examples of these is the state of Israel, which through ingenious irrigation systems has been able to convert the arid areas within it into productive farmlands. Poverty is a reality in the state of New Mexico and it is one of the reasons why it has received the poor rankings among the other states of the nation. It is a fact that all of the causes of poverty in this state are within the human means to solve as long as there is a bit of dedication and support from the federal government as well as its neighboring states. Since among the main cause of poverty in the state is its geography, steps should be taken to ensure that the various geographical factors are overcome to make the state more productive. However, most of the people with the power to make a difference, especially the politicians, are either unwilling or unable to do so because they do not want to disturb the status quo as it is. It is this attitude that the state leaders should struggle to fight in order to be able to help the people who are affected by poverty because if they do not, then a path will be opened that will lead to chaos within the state when the levels of poverty within it become unbearable. Works Cited Arellanes, Ralph. "My Turn: Break the Cycle of Poverty for New Mexico's Hispanos." The Taos News Jan 24 2008. Barringer, Felicity. "Amid Drought, Water Board in New Mexico Confronts State Over Supply." New York Times: A.16. Apr 10 2013. Clarke, Kevin. "Another America: A Look at 'Poverty Homesteading' in New Mexico." U.S. Catholic 2003: 36-9. Gutzler, David S. and Nims, Joshua S. "Interannual Variability of Water Demand and Summer Climate in Albuquerque, New Mexico." Journal of Applied Meteorology 44.12 (2005): 1777-87. Kusel, Denise. "Only in Santa Fe: New Mexico Poverty Rate a Complex Equation." The Santa Fe New Mexican: B. Oct 01 2000. Levy, Celinda, et al. "Critical Elements in the Design of Culturally Appropriate Interventions Intended to Reduce Health Disparities: Immunization Rates among Hispanic Seniors in New Mexico." Journal of health and human services administration 26.1 (2003): 199-238. Li, Yongmei, et al. "Water Availability and Usage on the New Mexico/Mexico Border." Journal of environmental health 68.3 (2005): 10,7, 32. Page-Reeves, Janet. "Commentary: The Nexus of Poverty, Hunger, and Homelessness in New Mexico." Social Justice 38.3 (2012): 33-41. Ramirez, Rosa. "1 in 5 Kids in U.S. Living in Poverty, Report Says." National journal Dec 05 2012 Roepke, Craig. "Their View: Keep New Mexico's Water in New Mexico." Las Cruces Sun – News Mar 13 2012. Read More