Kids Living in Poverty in the US

Tonight there is an interesting show on ABC’s 20/20 with Diane Sawyer. It is called “Waiting on the World to Change” The Hopes, Dreams and Hardships of Children in America’s Most Dangerous City.

Here is a teaser from the ABC website…

A Year in the Life of Children in Poverty

What’s it like for kids to live with no electricity, rushing to finish homework before sundown? Diane Sawyer reports on a year in the life of children in one of the poorest cities in America.

The program looks at kids in Camden, New Jersey.

Jan. 25, 2007 — Abandoned homes, empty lots, gunfire, police sirens.

These are the sights and sounds of Camden, N.J.

Camden has been named America’s most dangerous city twice by City Crime Rankings, an annual reference book. During the 2005 Christmas holidays, there were four slayings in 48 hours, all too characteristic of a place with a murder rate more than seven times the national average.

A typical morning in Camden, detractors say, could see 33 drug busts in less than three hours. Crack, heroin and marijuana are the currency of the streets, making up by some estimates a $43 million industry.

Imagine trying to survive in this environment. Now imagine being a child, struggling to thrive.

The three children that are profiled on the website in relation to this story are all of minority race.

Often we think that all of the kids in the world that are suffering are in other countries, far, far away, but I know that that is not the truth. There are many kids suffering here in our own country…suffering from poverty, hunger, neglect and abuse. I know, because two of the kids we have adopted lived that way for quite some time. The stories they tell me are hard to hear, and hard to believe that they happened in OUR country.

These are the kind of TV shows that most people don’t want to watch on their Friday nights…they want some entertaining and light-hearted. But to watch, is to learn, is to care, and to possibly even decide to become part of the solution.

I know it will be hard to watch, especially knowing where some of my kids have been, but I plan on watching.

There is lots of great info, including a story, pictures, video, etc. on the website, so even if you miss it tonight, check out the website here.

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