1) Why do you think many people aren't aware of how many starving children there are today?
I think that people are busy with their own lives and sometimes just don’t pay attention to what is going on outside of their own busyness. I believe that some only see what is outside of their own front door, meaning if we don’t see poverty around us, where we live, where we shop, then we think it doesn’t exist in our community. It also raises the issue of “what does poverty look like” ? Does it have to look like a third world country or what we see on TV; it does not. In our communities, it can be people experiencing food insecurity, where will our next meal come from. We may not know this is happening to them. Look at the statistics in your own area of how many children are on free and reduced lunches.
Here are a few statistics on the numbers and consequences of:
Child Poverty By The Numbers
Nationwide:
22% of children live in poverty = ~ 16 million children
Ohio:
23.1% of children live in poverty =~ 750,000 children
Child poverty rates are highest among black, Latino, and American Indian children
Source: National Center for Children in Poverty
The Urban Institute
Consequences of Poverty
- Unable to gain/retain employment
- Reduced opportunity for education
- Health problems
- Lack of shelter
- Food Insecurity
2) Do you have any ideas for how kids like me can help make a difference in the number of starving children today?
·Be an advocate…care. Educate yourself about the need around you and share with friends, family, people in leadership.
·Figure out where the need is in your community and brainstorm on how you can make a difference.
·Volunteer at a local food bank.
·Be creative, have a food drive in your neighborhood, church or school.
·Collect gently used clothes for teenagers who are in need. They want to look just like everyone else but may not have the money to buy new clothes, shoes, etc.
3) Why do some people know about the issue, but choose to ignore it?
This is hard to answer because I don’t. I think sometimes people think, out of sight, out of mind. They don’t want to see it or they are too busy in their own lives to do anything about it. Sometimes they don’t know what to do, so they do nothing. Even though we do our best to get the information out there about how you can help, some choose not to.
I also think there are misconceptions about why people are in poverty..some assume all that are in poverty are lazy and they don’t want to work. Sometimes there are reasons for lack of employment, such as lack of education and job skills, transportation, mental and physical illness, lack of child care.