Absolute Poverty In Canada

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Poverty according to Oxford dictionary is defined as the state of being extremely poor. There are two types of poverty, relative and absolute. “Relative poverty is the lack of resources of some people in relation to those who have more while absolute poverty is a lack of resources that Is life threatening.” (Macionis, Janson, Benoit, & Burkowicz, 2017.) Is the poverty in Canada absolute or relative? Although Canada is a rich country, there are still people who live in poverty, “In 2011, the government classified about 4.7 million men, women and children –– almost 15 percent of the Canadian population –– as poor” (Macionis et al., 2017.) Since there are there is a great about of poor people, how does Canada define poverty? “one popular measure …show more content…
“a 2009 survey of residents at Salvation Army Shelters revealed that nearly 25 percent of the shelter population have jobs –– but are still unable to make ends meet” (Macionis et al., 2017) If the minimum wage is too little for people, should the government not increase the minimum wage so people can be able to meet their needs? Also, when it comes to the health system, many people who are suffering from poverty or are homeless suffer from internal health problems. From mental illness, down to abusive circumstances. According to Raphael (2003), “extensive survey of local public health units across Canada found that half of 98 responding health regions did not have any initiatives addressing poverty issues” (p. 398). In Theory, you can connect it to Social-Conflict theory. A macro-level analysis that states that “there are resources, but it benefits some and harms others.” (Macionis et al., 2017). Canada might be rich but the resources are not enough to reach all. Which is why poverty rate will keep increasing until the government …show more content…
This theory explains why inequality exists and why rich people think the a certain way and poor people another way. The micro level analysis of social stratification is “important because people’s social standings affect their everyday life.” (Macionis et al., 2017). Rich people do not want to hang with homeless people. Everyone thinks highly of themselves that poor people just don’t want to work and are lazy is not surprising. Because of their social standing, they try to justify inequality. However, some might use the Structural-functional Theory to argue that the inequality in society is fair. This theory believes that “Unequal rewards boosts economic production by encouraging people to work harder and try new ideas.” (Macionis et al., 2017). But what must be asked is to what extent is unequal rewards acceptable? There are way too many people living in poverty, and the income inequality gap is too