Youth Living in Poverty

Poverty is a reality for many youth and their families. According to the Children's Defense Fund, nearly 10.5 million children were considered economically disadvantaged ("poor") in 2019. Many youth experience housing instability. During 2017-18, over 1.5 million school-aged children experienced homelessness (Children's Defense Fund). Youth that live in poverty can face challenging circumstances as they interact with others in various contexts, such as at home, at school, and more broadly in the community. Bronfenbrenner's ecological theoretical framework provides a helpful way to understand that adequate access to resources is vital to youth "thriving."

Structures that Can Perpetuate Poverty

While the topic of poverty can be very complex to understand, research reveals that structures can shape the ebb and flow of resources to underserved communities of color. In her famous article, "Levels of racism: A theoretic framework and a gardener's tale" describes a flower box analogy to illustrate some of the mechanisms that interrelate when seeking to understand the complexities that youth of color can experience, such as racism and limited access to resources.

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Reflection Questions

• Read article here.
• In the article, Dr. Jones describes an allegory that contains two flower boxes. The first has rich fertile soil and the second has poor rocky soil. Is there a relation between “poor rocky soil” and poverty? If so, how?
• The allegory goes on to explain the “gardener” prefers red flowers over pink flowers. The pink flowers are planted in the poor rocky soil. Does the pink flower get to “decide” which flower box to reside within? How may this allegory relate to youth living in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods?
• The allegory describes a structure whereby the gardener separates the soil into two different flower boxes. The system maintains that the rich fertile soil goes in one flower box and the poor rocky soil goes into a separate flower box. What structures are prevalent in your community and how do these structures gate keep access to economic resources for youth?
• A central figure in the allegory is “the gardener.” In your opinion, who is the gardener? Why?

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References

Arnold, M. E., & Gagnon, R. J. (2020). Positive youth development theory in practice: An update on the 4-H Thriving Model. Journal of youth development (Online), 15(6), 1-23. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.5195/jyd.2020.954 

Bronfenbrenner, U., & Morris, P. A. (2007). The Bioecological Model of Human Development. Handbook of Child Psychology, 793-828. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470147658.chpsy0114 

Jones, C. P. (2000). Levels of racism: A theoretic framework and a gardener's tale. American journal of public health, 90(8), 1212-1215.