Resources on Poverty:

Books to Read:

Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich- The author writes a “diary” style description of her experiences working in different low-wage jobs across the country. Great humor and insight.

Until It’s Gone by Scott C. Miller- Scott Miller makes the case for ending poverty in America.  Community change is created through the knowledge of what it really takes for people to get out of poverty.

The Working Poor: Invisible in America by David Shipler- A journalist’s perspective on what it means to be poor in America. Many portraits of poverty combined with an analysis of the failure of economic systems and other societal systems in America.

A Framework for Understanding Poverty by Ruby Payne- Teaches the “hidden rules” of economic class and that there are strategies for overcoming class differences. She describes poverty as “the extent to which an individual does without resources.”

Websites to visit:

www.jobsnowcoalition.org – The JOBS NOW Coalition clearly documents what families in Minnesota need to meet their basic needs. There is a wage and budget calculator to determine what it takes to support your family in your county.

www.indicators.nwaf.org – This website includes forty-six indicators of local population characteristics – poverty and other family stability indicators.

www.workingpoorfamilies.org The Working Poor Families Project is a national initiative focused on state workforce development policies.

www.commissions.leg.state.mn.us/lcep/  – This is the website for the Minnesota Legislative Commission to End Poverty by 2020. There are many resources about poverty in Minnesota.