Poor-bashing is the classist version of racism and sexism that is conveyed though both words and actions. It causes people in poverty to feel ashamed, less than, and unworthy, while causing non-poor people to think that poor people should be ashamed and 'need to work harder' because it is their 'fault'. These feelings of shame stop people from telling others that they are poor in fear of being poor-bashed and stereotyped. The system and culture that we live in silences conversations about money and poverty such that non-poor people are kept from the truth about poverty and thus continue to believe the stereotypes that they are fed. It is important to challenge these stereotypes and learn about the systems in place that keep poor people in poverty.
Like being racist, we all poor-bash so you should assume that you do it in order to figure out when and how. Only when we can admit that we poor-bash, are we able to challenge our own thinking, work towards being anti-poverty, and accept criticism when we are called out for poor-bashing. Then we can start to challenge the poor-bashing that we read or hear around us. You can learn more about being an ally in the next section How to be an Ally.
In order to challenge poor-bashing, we need to expose the systems and policies that cause poverty in the first place.
With a full time job, minimum wage is not enough to get out of poverty and is below the calculated living wage. A living wage is calculated for a family of four with two adults working full time, one child in day care, and the other in after-school care. It does not account for any debt, savings, or owning a home. Look at the Poverty in Canada page to learn more about a living wage.
Government laws and policies are the root cause of poverty in Canada and it is not the individual's fault. There is enough wealth in Canada that could erase poverty if it was equally distributed. Also, there are not enough decent paying jobs for everyone who needs one. The welfare system's strict rules and policies cause people to fight/compete for any jobs that are available, usually promoting cheap labour or working poverty.
Government policies are also allowing corporations to not pay their full share of taxes. In 2015/16, corporations only paid $1, while people paid $3.50 to the government in income tax. In other words, corporations only paid $41 billion in total, while Canadian citizens paid $145 billion.
There is an ever-growing need to educate people on poverty and poor-bashing in order to reduce poor-bashing and stop the marginalization of people in poverty. You can not fight the system if you do not know there is something to fight for.
Learning about poor-bashing and the systems behind poverty give power to people in poverty. You can not fight to change something if you do not know how it works. "When the inequities are just vaguely inside us, it shuts us down… When we understand the inequalities, it gives us power. We understand that one reason the rich are rich is because governments help them" (Jean Swanson).
Without educating people about poor-bashing, we can not reduce it. This could help students from low-income families feel more comfortable at school and they should be consulted on whether they would like to be a part of this education process.
“So as long as the idea exists that it’s okay for some people to be poor because of their race, sex, the country they live in, or some other category, every powerless person in the world is also at risk. We don’t understand what’s causing our economic insecurity if we’re blaming it on people of colour or women or people in other countries or people on welfare or panhandlers. If we don’t understand its causes, then we won’t be able to struggle effectively against it. So, a huge part of challenging poor-bashing is also to challenge the racism and sexism that is used to justify poverty, conceal power, and cheapen labour here in Canada and all over the world” (Jean Swanson).
There are double-standards for people in poverty that seemingly do not apply to richer people.
Poor or single-parent families are heavily judged if they do not work and are considered 'lazy' with 'no personal goals,' while a stay-at-home parent in rich or two-parent families are praised and celebrated.
People on welfare are judged and ridiculed for being 'lazy,' while a richer person who stays at home, not working, is not considered 'lazy.'
People believe that they have the right to judge and dictate what people on welfare do with their cheques because they do not want their 'tax dollars to be wasted,' while these same people do not hold judgement for or complain about the loopholes rich people and corporations use to pay lower taxes or not pay at all (which is also wasting tax dollars).
Below is a link to a podcast by Bradley Scott and Aurelio Montemayer on children in poverty told from a USA perspective from March 12, 2009.
"Poverty does not affect me" - Poverty can affect anyone if they do not have resources to protect themselves in unforeseen circumstances
"People make wrong choices and should live with them" - Sometimes it is just a matter of luck. Not everyone is born with the same privileges, connections, and choices other people have and so it is a matter of what circumstances you are in and the policies in place that keep you there.
"Too many people are on welfare" - There are more, stricter rules for people on welfare which then limits the number of people who qualify.
"Canada can't afford welfare" - The Story wants us to believe that Canada cannot afford welfare so that non-poor people continue to fight against the welfare system and continue to stigmatize people on welfare.
"People want to live on the street" - People do not actually want to live on the street but choose it over staying in shelters that normally have poor conditions or choose it over dealing with the dehumanizing welfare system.
“Welfare is a way of life passed on through generations” - People only go on welfare when they have no other choices or places to turn to for financial support.
“People on welfare…” - Starting sentences with this perpetuates stereotypes and is used to generalize and group everyone together.
"Children from low-income families need to be saved" - Children in poverty are people outside of their financial situation. They have life experience, a lot to contribute, many positive attributes, and their own family traditions. They do not need saving, just different supports at school and for the system to stop working against them.
"Children in poverty always have bad behaviour" - Children in poverty are more likely to be in trouble for bad behaviour than richer children who get away with the same behaviour. Where does your implicit bias fit in here? What is the child in poverty trying to tell you? What do they need? Are they tired, hungry, scared?
Header photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash
Swanson, J. (2001) What poor people say about poor-bashing in Poor-bashing: The politics of exclusion.
Swanson, J. (2001) Challenging poor-bashing within and around us in Poor-Bashing: The politics of exclusion.
Oved, M. C., Heaps, T., & Yow, M. (2017) The high cost of low corporate taxes. https://projects.thestar.com/canadas-corporations-pay-less-tax-than-you-think/
Scott, B. & Montemayer, A. (Mar 12, 2009). Busting myths about children in poverty - podcast episode 50. From Intercultural Development Research Association. https://www.idra.org/resource-center/busting-myths-about-children-of-poverty/