Comparing Alexander’s Discussion of Poverty to Spurgeon’s
Comparing Alexander’s Discussion of Poverty to Spurgeon’s
Poverty is a multifaceted phenomenon that occurs globally. The idea of poverty has undergone various analyses by different authors. Two such thoughts are presented in Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” and Michael Spurgeon’s “Let the Water Hold Me Down.” The perspective presented by Alexander explains that whether through mass incarceration for drug offences or other criminal activities that come as a result of racism, the poverty experienced leads to economic oppression. Spurgeon’s perspective views poverty as a personal and cultural issue. The paper compares Alexander’s discussion of poverty to Spurgeon’s and explains the kind of argument that might be formed from their synthesis.
Comparative Analysis of Alexander’s discussion of poverty to Spurgeon’s
Michelle Alexander’s work argued how mass incarceration does contribute to the creation of a new type of racial class, ensuring that the economic disparities in the African American population remain constant. According to the author, mass incarceration and the policies that gave birth to the problem, including the war on drugs, contributed to African Americans experiencing high levels of poverty and marginalization (Alexander 21). The problem is not only formed as a result of the system that targets the black people community in criminal justice but also the economic world. Crime offenders are socially marginalized from society and are not allowed to work, live and study in civilized societies and thus earn very low wages; they are a passage to eternal oppression.
Alexander clarified how the legal system contributes to the maintenance of economic differences among people. Black people are arrested and incarcerated more than their white counterparts, leading to the acquisition of a criminal record, which can hinder their employment opportunities (Alexander 37). Some reasons for poverty rates among African Americans include being locked out of the labour market systematically. Furthermore, when a person gets a criminal record, social exclusion is worsened, thereby deepening the existing gulf in the matter of economic differences.
On the other hand, Michael Spurgeon’s work can be viewed as a response to the conventional constructed realistic theme of prison by emphasizing the concepts of individuals and culture associated with poverty. The story revolves around the life of Hank Singer, the main character of the film, living in a Mexican town (Spurgeon 12). Spurgeon focused on the problems of poverty, choosing individuality and community as the main ideas. The main characters have a relatively poor status in terms of the economy, but its enactment is controlled by culture, decision, and association.
While drawing attention to the issue of poverty, Spurgeon speaks about the main personal strengths affiliated with people in poverty. The characters in the work by Spurgeon are emancipated despite the limitations of their economic status to fight with special turns of voice. In this approach to receiving poverty, the role of support is boosted with the aim of reducing the economic marginalization of specific ethnic groups (Spurgeon 55). From Spurgeon’s account, it is clear that structural factors are deterministic of poverty; hence, prevention and elimination of poverty require individual and communal initiatives leading to resilience and power.
The analysis of the pair of Alexander and Spurgeon shows what poverty is all about and its structural and individual aspects. Alexander correctly identifies economic oppression as systematic and argues that institutional racism and mass incarceration contribute to the creation of African Americans’ poverty (Alexander 46). Michelle Alexander’s argument implies that there is a need to prosecute policies that deal with such structural problems. On the other hand, in Spurgeon’s story, the focus is made on the individual and social aspects of poverty, which, in turn, emphasizes that such factors as spirit and people’s help play an important role in overcoming economic difficulties.
Alexander’s main focus lay in revealing the intimate connection between race and poverty and how mass incarceration became a tool to disfranchise African Americans of their rights and opportunities for employment and financial stability. The reason why poverty is both a result and a promoter of racial prejudice in the criminal justice system is that marginalization appears cyclical. The systemic perspective indicates that poverty cannot be addressed in its full sense if racism entrenched in institutions is not dealt with (Alexander 52).
In contrast, Spurgeon’s story painted the picture of poverty through the lives of the people promoted by the effects of poverty and their efforts to overcome them through individualism and collectivism. The cultural perspective of the novel by Spurgeon is also a good background to note how cultural factors such as traditions and support from local people help people experiencing poverty (Spurgeon 63). While Alexander’s subjects experienced more concrete and straightforward systemic restrictions, the main characters in Spurgeon’s story dealt with a curious exchange between the concepts of individual decision-making and traditional limitations.
The Kind of Argument Formed From Their Synthesis
An argument that can be built by synthesizing these views concerns the role of structure and agency in maintaining and eradicating poverty. The argument is that poverty can only be solved through a complex agenda that deals not only with the roots of the problem but also seeks to reform the people who are in poverty or the communities. Thus, though it is necessary to change structure to reduce the impact of the institutions maintaining economic subordination, it is equally important to empower individuals and communities to be resilient.
In the structural reforms arguments, it is evident that policy reforms are vital in dealing with the systemic roots of poverty, as explained in Alexander’s work. Such reforms could be criminal justice reform that is critical to decreasing mass incarceration and eliminating racism in the system (Alexander 217). Efforts to reduce criminal records of misdemeanours, abolition of bail, prisoner’s release, pardons, probation, and parole reformation, and supported reintegration into society are ways to address the economic disparities affecting African Americans.
Also, ensuring that the pertaining economic policies are adopted is essential in dealing with poverty. However, the fight against systemic racism that is responsible for the poor economic status of blacks would be enhanced by the improvement of the anti-discrimination laws and encouraging their implementation. The laws help deal with workplace bias, housing, and school bias. The reforms are crucial in developing policies that will foster a just society that provides everybody with an equal opportunity to attain a state of economic efficiency.
Aside from the structural modifications, it is equally important to endeavour further to activate the capacity or mobilization of people or communities as postulated by the programs and processes Spurgeon has discovered (Spurgeon 182). The motivation for the development of the community, which assists people in poverty in obtaining the support they require, can help build people who can resist poverty. The programs might focus on such fields as education, health care, and vocational training and enable people to acquire sufficient knowledge and skills to change their status in the economic system.
Conclusion
While comparing Alexander and Spurgeon’s works, it is evident that poverty can be viewed from different perspectives. Based on Alexander’s argument about racism and mass incarceration, handling poverty requires the removal of socioeconomic differences. On the other hand, the criteria that Spurgeon analyzed included individual and socio-cultural factors where people and cultures need resources to give them power over negative forces as they fight against poverty.
Therefore, any framework that addresses poverty must be a project of policies and practices to rally people and groups’ capability. Addressing the structures of oppression that maintain economic disparity while simultaneously promoting and empowering the client and community’s assets and strengths leads to a socially just society.
Works Cited
Spurgeon, Michael. Let the Water Hold Me Down. Ad Lumen Press, 2013. https://archive.org/details/letwaterholdmedo0000spur/page/n3/mode/2up
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