Poverty Awareness Week sheds light on area problems

Some sobering statistics displayed on Locust Walk this week may make some students realize their Economics midterm wasn't the worst thing in the world. One out of three children in the world is poor. One out of five West Philadelphians lives below the poverty line. Nearly 25,000 homeless people live in Philadelphia. As part of the annual Poverty Awareness Week, banners displaying these startling statistics are posted up and down the Walk. According to organizers, the goal is to make students aware of the issues surrounding poverty. College senior Toni Roth, a co-coordinator of the week's events, said the organizers hope to make Penn students realize just how large a problem poverty is. This, she said, is the reason for the banners. "It's hard to do volunteer work in a vacuum," Roth said. "A lot of students in Penn do volunteer, but they often do it without thinking about the reasons they do it. And those reasons are poverty." College junior Joshua Zeichner, who works at Hillel's weekly soup kitchen, said that knowing the facts about poverty will encourage volunteerism. "If you're aware of what's going on, you look for ways to help," he said. Some students, however, said they think University students are largely indifferent to the plight of the poor. During a discussion group yesterday of more than 20 students active in community service, College sophomore Cate Swinburn said most students are simply uninterested. "So many are apathetic," she said. "Most Penn students just don't care about West Philadelphia, and they forget that there are communities past 42nd Street. "I don't know what to do, take away their credit cards or what," she added, to laughter and the nodding of heads. Taking a different viewpoint, one student who asked to remain anonymous responded that it's "not necessarily that people don't care, they just don't have the knowledge. People are really career-driven here, and it blocks their ability to see what's outside." The discussion, entitled "What Every Volunteer Should Know," was sponsored by Empty the Shelters, a local activist organization. The event, which sought to give volunteers background information on poverty, included discussions on welfare reform, housing shortages, the effects of poverty on children and the globalization of the economy. "It's an education about different poverty issues for volunteers -- things they need to know when they go into the community so they can understand the context they're in," College senior and PAW co-coordinator Liz Theoharis said. Chris Caruso, a 1993 College graduate and a founder of Empty the Shelters, discussed how globalization and technological advances have cost many people in Philadelphia -- and around the world -- their jobs. "The result of these twin processes is this incredible polarization between poverty and wealth," he said, noting that in 1996 the world's 407 richest people had as much money as the poorest 50 percent, about 2.5 billion people. Poverty Awareness Week events, which include a speech tonight in conjunction with Unity Week, continue through Saturday. Other highlights include a screening of a documentary about poverty in Philadelphia Thursday night and a charity coffee house Friday night at the Castle.