#povertysimulation

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Community Action Poverty Simulation

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December Learning: Systems of Power and Privilege on the Macro to Micro Level

(Above: A snapshot from a poverty simulation hosted by the East Liberty Presbyterian Church in East Liberty. Photo courtesy of Sam Sittenfield.)

Over the past several months, we have been fortunate to facilitate two Poverty Simulations with ELDI, Just Harvest, EECM, and Open Hand Ministries.  The simulation gives you a taste of what it feels like to be in poverty for a month. During the last Poverty Simulation, I played the role of the employer.

Each simulated week, my ‘employees’ had to come in and write down their answers to questions reflecting on the simulation.  I saved the answers to read after it was all over, and the one that hit home was the struggle of one of my ‘employees’: “When there are trying situations at home, and I’m working, I’m separated from them and worrying about them the whole time I’m at work.”

How can someone be productive at work, or at school, for that matter, if they can’t stop worrying about what’s happening at home?

Three weeks ago, Slate published an excerpt of a new book called: ‘Hand to Mouth: Living in Bootstrap America’.  The author, Linda Tirado, describes her experiences in poverty, highlighting that methods that I use to save money don’t work for people who are living paycheck-to-paycheck.  I am a fan of buying beans and grains in bulk; I had to take a step back to see why doesn’t work for people in poverty.  The upfront investment in a 20lb bag of rice can cast a shadow of doubt the size of a sumo wrestler.  When you have three part-time jobs and no benefits, how could you find the time to soak your dried beans before cooking them for 1.5 hours?

How can you stop worrying about home when you can’t put enough food on the table?  When you can’t keep it warm?

I don’t have to worry about what is going on at home.

If I do, it is not whether or not my family will eat or be able to heat the house.

I am not encumbered by structural injustices.

I have the luxuries of time and stability.

I am white.

The best answer that I have found so far comes from another ‘employee.’ He wrote that we must “try to support each other.”  Build Community. Support Neighbors, Friends, and Family.  Lean in.  Collaborate.

Even though I am white, we are all in this together.

      Written by Sam Sittenfield, a Repair the World: Pittsburgh fellow.

The rtwpittsburgh Tumblr blog is a compilation of media reflecting the thoughts, ideas, and opinions of the fellows from the 2014-2015 Repair the World: Pittsburgh cohort. Some of the text posts will follow themes according to the RTW Arc of the Year table and some will not. Please contact digital community manager Becca Sufrin at [email protected] with questions or for more information.

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Poverty Simulation for The School of Social Work at Cal State University San Bernardino.

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Poverty Simulation: Story in The Daily Bulletin

via: Inland Valley Daily Bulletin Many thanks to the Daily Bulletin for covering our Poverty Simulation last week. Their story on the event, written by Liset Marquez, can be found here. If you happen to see or hear of any other media coverage of the Poverty Simulation in Ontario, please tell us about it in the comments section below.  

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Poverty Simulation: Experiencing the Challenges of Living with a Low-Income

Yesterday, we held a Poverty Simulation at Chaffey High School in Ontario, CA. Each person who attended the event had the chance to briefly experience the frustration and stress that low-income individuals and families face everyday. The exercise challenged participants to maintain their self-sufficiency while dealing with real-life issues like transportation, unexpected healthcare costs, and inconsistent employment.   Here are some pictures of the Poverty Simulation in action:

If you participated in the event, please share your thoughts on the experience in the comments section below. Over the next week, we will be posting more pictures and video from the day, as well as feedback that we received from participants. Let's keep the conversation going!

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Catholic Charities hosts Poverty Simulation in partnership with the University of Redlands and the Family Service Association of Redlands

On October 10th, 2013, Catholic Charities hosted a Poverty Simulation in partnership with the University of Redlands and the Family Service Association of Redlands. The event was held at the University of Redlands, Orton Center from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. This free, half-day workshop provided participants with a new perspective on the challenges that low-income families often face.

  A “Poverty Simulation” is a unique tool that helps educate the community, from policy makers to local business owners, about the realities of living a life with a shortage of money and an abundance of stress. 

 During the simulation, participants role-played the lives of low-income family members, from single parents trying to care for their children to senior citizens on Social Security trying to maintain their self-sufficiency. The task for each participant was to find a way to eat, locate or maintain shelter, and secure other basic necessities.

Although it used "play" money, fictional scenarios, and time limits, the Poverty Simulation is not just a game. Instead, it reflects many of the struggles that low-income families encounter. Participants, like these families, had to overcome financial and emotional challenges while facing insurmountable barriers with inadequate community support and limited personal resources.  

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Pictures from the Poverty Simulation

Did you participate in the Poverty Simulation?  Here are some pictures from the day!

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Poverty Simulation in San Bernardino

Rachel Luna/San Bernardino Sun On January 3rd, we held a Poverty Simulation at Cal. St. San Bernardino as part of First 5 San Bernardino's State of First 5 Address.  The San Bernardino Sun covered the event, and you can click here to read their article. If you attended the Simulation, please share your thoughts in the comments section and check back for more pictures from the day.