Dear Future President,

Today In our country there are multiple problems that have yet to find a solution. One of these problems, happens to be poverty. Poverty is spread across the United States and continues to go unnoticed as it varies from state to state.

Although I haven't personally experienced the hard reality of living in poverty, there are many people in society who sadly have to endure it. It is true that we never know what someone is going through, but poverty shouldn't be one of those things. Recently in my religion class the topic of poverty has been a popular discussion. After learning some statistics there I found that it is a widespread problem and wanted to learn more.

I was able to learn more after doing some research on my own I found that in 2014 15% of the population lived below the poverty line, which is 46.7 million people, according to usnews.com in an article written by Max Van Zile. This number may have increased as years have gone on. Many Americans tend to live under this line because of lack of employment as a result of the economic recession. I also found that statistics of those living under the poverty line vary as different factors come into play. According to an article in the NyTimes, Poverty in America: Why Can’t We End It?,by Peter Edelman, poverty is still in existence for four reasons, low wage jobs, households ran by single parents, cash assistance is failing, and race plus gender. The article is four years old, but it goes to show that poverty has been an issue for some time and still is, which brings the question, what will the next president do to stop it?

                                     Sincerely, 

                                                     Mayree Ellis