Hunger and Poverty Among African-Americans in the Last Ten Years in Texas - Research Paper Example

Hunger and Poverty Among African-Americans in the Last Ten Years in Texas Texas is the second biggest state in the United States of America when measured in terms of population. The population of Texas is approximately 24 million, which includes people from various races and ethnic origin like Hispanics, Afro Americans etc. While there remain certain traditional factors associated with Texas, the state has also emerged as an urban state with some major cities of the United States like San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas etc. However, poverty and food insecurity remain two critical and widespread issues in Texas, especially among the Afro American people residing in the state. The Afro American people seem to form a major part of the poverty and hunger ridden group in the state as given in the graph below for the year 2011. (Source: Texas Politics, 2011) As such the research work is done to identify and evaluate the multiple dimensions of poverty and hunger associated with the Afro American group of the state. Therefore, the research question is to identify the reasons and impacts of hunger and poverty of the African-Americans in the last ten years in Texas. Despite being a state experiencing high growth and development, the poverty rate in Texas is high. Poverty is Texas seems to be multifaceted. While the factor of poverty and hunger are seen among people of different ethnic backgrounds, the level of poverty felt by the minority communities of the state like the Afro Americans and the Hispanics is much more than those of the majority communities like the white Anglo natives. Hunger is identified as a critical public health issue that is being faced by many groups of the total population in different parts of the United States. Hunger and food insecurity issues are also commonly found in Texas. The factors of hunger and food insecurity can lead to a number of different problems like obesity, poor health, lack of concentration, low cognitive development, depression, malnutrition and so on (Chen, Shilling and Lyder, 2001). Thus, the reasons and effects of hunger issues are gaining more prominence in the state which indicates that more attention should be given to these issues for the betterment of the whole society. According to Che and Chen (2002), food insecurity refers to the uncertain or limited availability and access to safe and nutritional food items in a socially acceptable and ethical manner (Che and Chen, 2002). A principal reason identified for hunger in Texas is the low ability of the Afro American population to afford proper food. The high poverty rates, poor income and high rates of unemployment among the African American people have made it difficult for them to afford suitable, safe, nutritional and sufficient food for themselves and their families. It is estimated that one in every four Afro American people in Texas face terrible difficulty in getting food for themselves on an everyday basis (Chen, Shilling and Lyder, 2001). The Afro American children face more difficulties to get proper nutritional and safe food as compared to Anglo-American children. More than 35% of the African American children belong to families in which everyday access to food is not possible due to the high rates of poverty, unemployment and low income sources. Hendy, Nelson and Greco (2001) have identified that these children are often deprived of the basic dietary requirements and suffer from malnutrition and other effects of hunger like slow growth and low cognitive development. Income and education Income level in a state and a country is an important determinant of the availability of a family living in the state to provide adequately for its needs. Income and employment are strongly interrelated with education. Income is necessary for building up the foundation of a strong economy and for enabling the population to be able to survive and provide proper protection against unforeseen circumstances like loss of job, illness etc. and creates a long term economic security for the population. The Afro American people in Texas have very less education and income rate. The societal trends show that the likelihood of the Afro American people being able to own homes is much less as compared to the overall population of Texas. For example, in the year 2009, 67.4% of the total population of the United States of America owned their personal homes. In comparison, only 46.2% of the total African American people owned their personal homes in the same year. This indicates the wide gaps prevailing in the society of Texas which might be considered to be another main reason for the accelerated poverty rate among the Afro American people living in Texas. The school dropout rate among the Afro American children is high and the college graduation rates are low. According to Lee and Frongillo (2001), the attainment of low levels of education have led to a significant drop in the income level and earning capacities of the Afro American population as well (Lee and Frongillo, 2001). Unemployment Employment is considered to be the foundation for the economic security of any population. The job losses after the recession in the United States have been significant. However, this has been felt in a disproportionate manner among the Afro American population of the country. Gundersen, Weinreb, Wehler and Hosmer (2003) have identified that even before the recessionary period, the rate of unemployment among the Afro American population was much higher than that in the overall population of the United States (Gundersen, Weinreb, Wehlel and Hosmer, 2003). The unemployment rate in the US was more than 8.6% in 2010 and the African American population experienced a high level of recessionary conditions even when the whole economy of the United States was recovering from the effects of the recession. This acted as a major catalyst in intensifying poverty among the Afro Americans. According to Dunifon and Kowaleski-Jones (2003), it can be identified that education, unemployment and income levels are strong determinants of the extent of poverty and hunger among the African American people living in Texas due to the conservative nature of the state (Dunifon and Kowaleski-Jones, 2003). However, some other researchers and scholars are of the view that poverty and hunger in the state of Texas are caused by the societal systems prevailing in the state and not by the factors of unemployment and education. According to some researchers like Gundersen and Kreider (2008), the existing systems of the society that have been carried forward through generations have been the principal cause of the widespread poverty among the minority groups of people like the Afro Americans and the Hispanic people living in Texas (Gundersen and Kreider, 2008). The unequal distribution of poverty in Texas indicates that societal causes may be playing an important role in intensifying poverty among the population in Texas. Conclusion The Afro American people of the state seem to be a backward and deprived part of the population which has been severely poverty stricken. Other issues like hunger, food insecurity, and low access to safe and nutritional food, high school dropout rates are also common. The issue of hunger and food insecurity has been highly driven by the extreme poverty rates prevailing among the African American people of this region. The rate of poverty and unemployment is also high among the Afro American Texans and the growing Latino group of population in the country, The Afro American children are found to be extremely affected by the factors of hunger and poverty, which has created a threat for the future generation of Afro Americans. However, the alternative view of the factors driving the poverty and hunger concerns in the state has also been considered. Suitable evidences indicate that the factors of unemployment, low income, education, hunger and poverty are closely interlinked. References Che, J. & Chen, J. (2002). Food Insecurity in United States Households. Health Reports. Vol. 12(4). Print. Chen, C., Shilling, L. & Lyder, C. 2001. A Concept Analysis of Malnutrition in the Elderly. Journal of Advanced Nursing. Vol. 36(1). Print. Dunifon, R. & Kowaleski-Jones, L. (2003). The Influences of Participation in the National School Lunch Program and Food Insecurity on Child Well-Being. Social Service Review. Vol. 77(1). Print. Gundersen, C. & Kreider, B. (2008). Food Stamps and Food Insecurity: What Can Be Learned in the Presence of Nonclassical Measurement Error? Journal of Human Resources. Vol. 43(2). Print. Gundersen, C., Weinreb, L., Wehler, C. & Hosmer, D. (2003). Homelessness and Food Insecurity. Journal of Housing Economics. Vol.12 (1). Print. Hendy, H., Nelson, G. & Greco, M. (2001). Social Cognitive Predictors of Nutritional Risk in Adults. International Journal of Aging and Human Development. Vol. 47(4). Print. Lee, J. & Frongillo, E. (2001). Nutritional and Health Consequences are Associated with Food Insecurity among U.S. People. Journal of Nutrition. Vol.131 (1). Print. Texas Politics. 2011. Texas Poverty by groups. Retrieved from http://www.laits.utexas.edu/txp_media/html/pov/features/texas_group/slide2.html. US Census Bureau. (2013). Population by groups in Texas. Retrieved from http://factfinder2.census.gov/legacy/aff_sunset.html?_ts=253550256250. Read More