Ignorance is Bliss

The class system in America has always been problematic. We currently rank 24th out of 25 developed countries on how well we address poverty. Only Mexico has a higher poverty rate. (American Center for Progress) The USA brands itself the land of opportunity, but how true is that claim? How do Americans reconcile these two statements that rationally cannot both be true?
More and more Americans are falling into poverty. Statistics show that it is much easier to fall down the ladder than move up it. Only 6 percent of children born into low income homes will have a high income as adults. A full 42 percent will either stay the same or fall further. (Center for American Progress) So why, if such a large percent of our population is unable to achieve, is very little being done to help them?
It has to do with the fact that our class system is not only more rigid than we think, but also people from the higher classes actively avoid knowing anything about those below them. This is done in a variety of ways, such as dehumanization or degradation of those below them, segregation by class, and assuming everyone is just like them.
The upper classes have a largely negative opinion of those below them without having interacted with them much. The most common belief is that the poor are either lazy or stupid. Surely no one with abilities and drive could be so poor, they think. Surely it's just because they aren't working hard enough, or they aren't intelligent enough to make something of themselves. Another common theme that comes up with menial laborers is the assumption that they are somehow less human, that they need less to be content and they aren't concerned with the fancy things rich people have. This is often romanticized by the rich, who long for "the simple life" without understanding any of the realities of it. Oddly, the poor are also often viewed as greedy and are labeled freeloaders when they take charity when they need it. Yet many wealthy actively avoid paying taxes. This seems to be a contradiction, because to take when you aren't in need is worse than to take when you are. It's a schizophrenic type of thinking that most people have about class. They like to think that everyone has an equal opportunity, and when evidence is offered that proves otherwise, the brain scrambles to come up with an explanation that doesn't offend their sensibilities.
The second way the rich and middle class avoid addressing the matter of poverty is by segregating those in poverty to out of sight areas, such as rural land and ghettos in cities. They concentrate all these people in one place, despite the fact that research has been done that shows that this makes their situation even worse (violence, gangs, terrible schools and other public services because no one has money to pay taxes) simply for their own peace of mind. This is a perfect example of "out of sight, out of mind". Also, because the wealthier have removed themselves from these areas, they can view it as an "over there" problem that they are not responsible for. If those in poverty were distributed somewhat equally over an area, they'd be much more visible and more likely to be helped.
The last, least intentional reason that wealthier people are unaware of the poverty problem in America has to do with how they view other people. Many of them fall victim to the thought that everyone has grown up at least somewhat as they have. It's the little issues that they don't think about. I have heard the argument that "My parents weren't around either" said by teenagers, who while their parents were at work making 6 figure salaries, were carted by au pairs to tennis lessons, friends' houses, restaurants and more. This is far different than the poor kid's "my parents weren't around". That can mean that one is in prison and the other works 16 hour days only to come home exhausted and collapse in bed. It can mean that they go hungry because there was no one to buy them food. It can mean gang involvement, because there are no tennis courts or even sports equipment. It can mean getting shot while you're walking to your friend's house because the streets aren't safe. These two groups can say the same statement and mean two totally different things. Another thing the rich often don't realize about the poor is how hard it is to function when you are perpetually threatened by hunger and violence. They take for granted that walking around is safe and they will have food on the table. It is so much harder to function when you don't have those things, and many wealthy don't see that and take it for being feeble minded or lazy.
All in all, there are several reasons that poverty is so rampant yet so invisible at the same time. All of them could be addressed, it's just a matter of doing it.

4, April. "Poverty by the Numbers." Center for American Progress. Center for American Progress, Apr. 2007. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. .