By Joan Alford
A new U.S. Census Bureau study says poverty usually is a temporary condition. But many charities report they are finding more people than ever are looking to them for long-term help.
Using data from 1993 to 1994, the Census Bureau says approximately 55 million people - about 21 percent of the country's population - experienced poverty for a least two straight months. One half of that number managed to escape poverty in less than five months.
But the figures were calculated before welfare reform legislation was enacted, so the report may not accurately reflect the 1998 poverty picture, say managers of some groups that help the poor.
"With changes in welfare, we're seeing 10 percent more people seeking help after being cut off from government-sponsored programs," says John Simmons, the executive director of Central City Concern, Inc. in Portland, Ore. "There's a lot of fear and confusion out there."
Central City Concern supports 1,100 housing units for those who would otherwise be homeless. It also operates an alcohol detoxification program that serves about 3,000 people annually.
The Cathedral Shelter of Chicago is feeling the crunch of welfare changes, too.
"Because of government changes and lack of funding, people at our halfway house stay with us a much shorter amount of time," says Rev. Glenn Chalmers, executive director of the shelter, which focuses on substance abusers. "Stays used to be anywhere from eight to 12 months; now, due to funding shortages, time must be reduced to three to six months," Chalmers says.
The Salvation Army sees no evidence of short-term poverty in the country. "Our experience is that although the economy is certainly good and more people are back to work, we don't see that it means people are any less poor," says Col. Tom Jones, national community relations and development secretary at the Salvation Army's national headquarters in Alexandria, Va. "In some cases, it's still overwhelming from our perspective.
"We're finding as many people hungry. Some certainly can be helped in a shorter period of time, but some need help longer."
The report also shows families with females as the head of the household have a much higher poverty rate than households with married couples or unrelated adults.
Jones agrees women and children are suffering the most.
"We're not just getting single men or [complete families] in need of shelter for one night, but single moms with children who need a home for as long as six months," says Jones. "We're trying desperately to deal with the root of the problem: does she need a G.E.D? Does she need help with a drug addiction? That sort of thing.
"In the last 10 years, we've had to reconfigure many of our buildings for single men and convert them to apartments where families could live with some dignity," Jones says. The army has 10,000 shelters nationwide located in big and medium-sized cities as well as in rural communities.
The Census Bureau study says children had the highest entry rate into poverty and stayed in the condition longer.
"It's hard for single parents to get ahead and back into the mainstream [while training for and looking for jobs] and that puts the children at risk," says Jones. "The problem feeds on itself."
The Oregon shelter is experiencing the same.
"We haven't noticed [a decreased number of people in need] at all. In fact, the numbers here are static except for the increase in women with children needing help," says Simmons.
Joan Alford can be reached at
jeapj@mindspring.com
