Impoverished- Adrianna Miller

IMPOVERISHED

WITH DREAMS

ADRIANNA MILLER

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Why is this Story Being Told?

Jamaica still struggles with a significant poverty problem, especially concentrated in rural areas where residents still have significantly less access to services such as running water and electricity. Poverty is the lacking of basic human needs such as health care, food, clothing and shelter. People are considered living in poverty if their income falls below a certain level or what is called a ‘poverty line’.

The poverty line is the minimum level of income that will enable persons or families to have an acceptable standard of living (Gayle, 2009).

A large number of the Jamaican population lives in poverty today even though there are programmes implemented to remedy this ill. St. Elizabeth and St.»»Mary p.12 are the two parishes with the highest level of poverty in Jamaica. Rural poverty is a state of being inferior in wealth and or opportunities in comparison to those in the urbanized areas.

The issue of rural poverty is newsworthy because it is a social ill that continues to happen. It is a problem that has fluctuated over the years but is ever present in the Jamaican population. Rural poverty is significant because there are a number of people who are greatly affected by this social issue. It is important to highlight these issues so that solutions can be drafted.

Though rural poverty is often overlooked it should be of national importance. Not only is this issue important but it has strong human interest elements. This project is centered on people in the rural areas. It is showcasing the struggles faced by the different individuals.

Photographs are being used to evoke emotions. It is a relatable topic as members of society can identify with it.The fact that humans are the main subjects will make the pictures more interesting and impactful.

a national issue but a global one. At least eight percent (80%) of humanity lives on less than ten dollars ($10) a day. More than eighty percent (80%) of the world’s population lives in countries where income differentials are widening. The poorest forty percent of the world’s population accounts for five percent (5%) of global income. The richest twenty percent (20%) accounts for three quarters of the world’s income (Shah, 2013). The richest twenty percent (20%) accounts for three quarters of the world’s income (Shah, 2013).

The National and Global Imapct.

Nationally rural poverty has plagued all fourteen (14) parishes of Jamaica St. Elizabeth and St. Mary having the highest level of it back in 2014.

According to an article in the Jamaica Observer newspaper the cause of poverty is linked to poor economic management. Rural poverty however is mostly linked to educational deprivation. Lack of education can lead to unemployment and this lack of income results in poverty. Other factors that stem from the lack of education are the inability of individuals to practice family planning.

This creates a problem because unplanned pregnancies are the outcome and having a lot of children just drives one further into poverty.

This is due to the parent’s inability to properly provide for these children.

The children then suffer because they are deprived of the necessities needed for them to later function as well rounded citizens.

However, there are cases where the children do not let their situations define them but it takes a lot for one to see their reality and choose not to accept it. Poverty is not just

Mary does not own a stove and on a rainy day her coal pot is her best friend if she has food to prepare for herself and the children.

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poverty is not the final stop

. ...”The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story” Chimamanda Adichie.

The stereotype created for ‘poor’ people is that they will forever be poor; that their situation defines them. This could not be further from the truth. The family of four that is in focus may be poor in material possessions but was not poor in their dreams especially the children.

They are a true example of not letting their situations define them.

Mary Moncrief the mother of eight does not have a steady income but still has to support her three sons that still lives with her. With the father being absent for the most parts Mary is left to steer what sometime feel like a sinking ship by herself. “Sometimes mi sell anything” said Mary; this is how she provides for the boys two of whom are in high school and the other still at the primary level.

Their father sometimes assists Mary but when he does not they either go without or she gets help from a family member. Despite the situation the boys still have dreams of becoming something.

They are determine to not let their current situation taint their future.

Nicholas who is the eldest of the three, a grade eleven student at Guys Hill High School has hopes of becoming an engineer or a police

Brian getting ready for school. He attends the Guys Hill High School.

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officer. He has already started laying the foundation to his dreams as he will be siting five CSEC subject this academic year. He also co-owns a pumpkin farm with his brother that they sell or use as a source of food.

It is hard to rise and be determined to achieve when continuously faced with obstacles like not having electricity, running water, a bathroom or even a kitchen, the continuous financial struggles and having to walk approximately six miles from school.

Sometimes he has to walk twelve mile to and from depending on if there is enough money for taxi fare. All of which are recipes for just throwing in towel and giving up on life but this acts as a motivation for Nicholas “Mi nuh waah live like this for the rest of mi life, White Spring Road, St. Mary marks the community in which Mary “stated a slightly frustrated Nicholas. Moncrief and her three sons resides.

Nicholas is on his way out of high school with big dreams, dreams that cost money yet he does not see how he is going to achieve these things.

He is not giving up though; he is determined to get out and make something of himself. Brian the middle child out of the three sons that is still living with Mary is not so fixated on his dreams. He has hopes of becoming a solider. Brian enjoys going to school despite the struggles and not always having enough to get by. He emulates his older brother Nicholas who is the only role model he has and also the only constant male figure in his life.

“Most mornings wi nuh have nothing fi eat before wi guh a school but mi still guh because mi like school” shared Brian. He might not have it all figured out yet but he has started to formulate his dreams. He has no plans of remaining in his current reality. He too wants to rise above it. Even the youngest of them all have dreams.

This two bedroom house donated by the Non-Porfitable Organization “Food for the Poor” is where Mary and her three sons lay their heads.

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Mary’s outdoor kitchen ‘dresser’ that she uses to put her untensils on while cooking.

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Mary smiles as she hangs out her youngest son colthes while engaging in a converstation with a family friend.

 Mary was distracted by a vistor while washing dishes in order to prepare breakfast for the children.

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Neil who is nine years old attends Sea Field Primary also wants to be a solider. He idolizes his older brothers and wants to follow in their footsteps as he too wants to attend Guys Hill High in the future. Neil is very reserved and enjoys doing mathematics and when he is not engaged in school related activities he is either playing with his neighbours or cutting grass for his mother “mi love cut grass” said a delighted Neil. Though unsure of why he likes these things he too has dreams. Dreams that he wants to come alive. Neil may not completely understand his reality but it affects him. This nine year old has to walk a total of approximately six miles daily to and from school because there is not enough money for taxi fare. Often times the journey to school is done on an empty stomach because there was no breakfast. His spirits remain high despite the struggles as he still finds the energy to play and interact with the other children when he gets to school. Neil is already not making his reality define him but have accepted the difference. Mary is doing the best she can with the limited resources she has to provide for her sons with little or no help “it nuh easy but mi try when mi can” said Mary with a reflective look on her face.

Neil stands next to the only source of potable water used by the family, contemplating whether he should attend school inlight of the impending rain.

“Nature’s Dish Rack and Closet” . Mary’s make Mary Hangs the boys clothes after washing them to shift dish drainer. prevent them from being too wrinkled because they have no electricity.

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Neil getting ready for school.

A journey of a thousand miles start with the first step. Neil has to walk approximately three miles each day to school.

Nicholas the eldest sits and posed for the camera after sharing his dreams of becoming a engineer or a police officer after high

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