E*V
发帖数: 17544 | 1 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=206331546
WASHINGTON (AP) — Four out of 5 U.S. adults struggle with joblessness, near
-poverty or reliance on welfare for at least parts of their lives, a sign of
deteriorating economic security and an elusive American dream.
Survey data exclusive to The Associated Press points to an increasingly
globalized U.S. economy, the widening gap between rich and poor, and the
loss of good-paying manufacturing jobs as reasons for the trend.
The findings come as President Barack Obama tries to renew his
administration's emphasis on the economy, saying in recent speeches that his
highest priority is to "rebuild ladders of opportunity" and reverse income
inequality.
As nonwhites approach a numerical majority in the U.S., one question is how
public programs to lift the disadvantaged should be best focused — on the
affirmative action that historically has tried to eliminate the racial
barriers seen as the major impediment to economic equality, or simply on
improving socioeconomic status for all, regardless of race.
Hardship is particularly growing among whites, based on several measures.
Pessimism among that racial group about their families' economic futures has
climbed to the highest point since at least 1987. In the most recent AP-GfK
poll, 63 percent of whites called the economy "poor."
"I think it's going to get worse," said Irene Salyers, 52, of Buchanan
County, Va., a declining coal region in Appalachia. Married and divorced
three times, Salyers now helps run a fruit and vegetable stand with her
boyfriend but it doesn't generate much income. They live mostly off
government disability checks. |
|
