Overview: The Origins of Poverty
Many Indian children suffer from poverty; more than 50% of India's total population lives below the poverty line, and more than 40% of this population are children. Reasons for this are embedded in India's social structure: first children are taught to accept the conditions which produce poverty, and then they perpetuate those conditions. If they are poor, Indian children and their families will do anything they can in order to survive. Often, this means repeating for themselves in generating the conditions in which their ancestors came into poverty. We contend that the following three conditions have caused India's poverty for many generations: (1) traditional cultural values, (2) discrimination, and (3) the societal oppression of children's ability to create change. Children are first born into the experience of poverty. Then, they reproduce it.
As we have stated on our "Family" page, Indian families place tremendous emphasis on religious and cultural tradition. The Indian civilization has survived for hundreds and thousands of years because of complex, perpetual socialization practices where children are taught to accept the cultural values of their ancestors.
The experience of discrimination is another origin of poverty. First, there is a clear distinction between the traditional socialization of Indian boys and Indian girls. Parents teach their daughters to be passive, dependent, and subservient so that they will grow up to be obedient wives. In contrast, Indian parents prepare their boys to be independent caretakers and providers.
Indian children find themselves categorized, however, on additional bases such as by age, and by caste. Their caste is a community, as well as a socio-economic status, that they are born into. As we have stated before, Indian children, especially those in minority groups, learn not to value their own ideas, but rather to accept their poor fate and perpetuate India's trusted cultural traditions. The suppression of women, children, and lower class Indians significantly limits the amount of humans who may contribute to this nation's growth, and keeps many of these individuals impoverished.
The Experience of Poverty
India has about 160 million family units, and a large portion of India's population is very young. The line between an infant, child and teenager or young adult is extremely thin. To be born in India is a big challenge, especially for kids whose parents can't afford even the basics, like housing, food and education.
Today, unfortunately, India has one of the highest numbers of children working for meager wages, just help their families to survive. When children work, they have much less time at home with their families, or to attend primary school and learn basic skills, such as the abilities to read, write, or solve math problems.
In India, there are children living in slums and on the streets, child labourers, and child construction workers. Over 50,000 children are abandoned in the country every year. 11 million children live on the streets and there are more than 44 million child labourers in India in all.
India does have about 200 million people who are classified by the government as middle class, yet India also has about 500 million people who do live quite under poverty line.
The experience of poverty means not having the basics: food, nutrition, clean water, adequate housing, adequate clothing, adequate working conditions, etc. Children in poverty were most likely born into poverty. They will labor from a very young age, and also, will most likely not receive an adequate education. Families reproduce very quickly in order to survive: they reproduce children who will assist in generating income for the family, and they reproduce the culture that keeps them in poverty. Children often feel hopeless, exploited, and because of socio-economic sentiments of inferiority, perhaps that they cannot even ask for better. Still, we have found that Indian children are agents who persist in their struggle: they work, some attend school, and they develop strong ties to their families and communities. Perhaps over time, organizations will empower Indian mothers, fathers, and children to attain more land, a better standard of living, and the vision of a better future.
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