1. Poverty in America Today
Erica Huckaby

2. Government Policies in America
Synthesis:
The source “Policies to Address Poverty in America” by Melissa S. Kearney and Benjamin H. Harris helps me argue that there needs to be more policies that help people in America escape from poverty, especially for children. This source helps me by providing information about the policies in America that are used to help reduce poverty. This source also helps me by providing data and statistics on how effective these policies are at reducing and stopping poverty in the United States. The next source I used for this subtopic is “U.S. Government Initiative Reduces Hunger and Poverty for Millions” by the US Aid From the American People gives me background Information on certain implementations the United States has in place to help fight poverty. For example, when President Obama took office he employed the feed the future campaign which committed over 3.5 billion dollars to end hunger and extreme poverty.

3. Source 1 “Policies to Address Poverty in America” by Melissa S
Source 1 “Policies to Address Poverty in America” by Melissa S. Kearney and Benjamin H. Harris
This source helps me argue that there is still needs to be more policies that help bring the United States out of poverty. In America there are millions of people who are suffering the hardships of poverty. This effects adults and kids across the nation. Since the Great Depression Presidents and congress have been doing all they can to make sure that the United States never slips back into that stage. This source discusses the polices the government have put into to place over the years such as welfare, and public assistance. This source also explains how these policies have helped but also how there should be more.

4. Source 2 U.S. Government Initiative Reduces Hunger and Poverty for Millions” by the US Aid From the American People
This source provides me with background information on policies that the united states have implemented to tackle the problems of poverty. Since taking office in 2009 President Obama has created several policies aimed at ending poverty in America and across the globe. For example, the Feed the Future campaign helped feed billions of impoverished people, particularly children. This source also helps me understand how the government goes about fighting poverty. It explains how congress must work together to end poverty in the United States.

5. Why the wealthiest nation on earth has so much poverty
Synthesis:
The source “Why One of the Richest Countries on Earth Is So Poor: The Facts that Drive the Sanders Revolt” by Les Leopold, helps me argue that the United States, which is one of the wealthiest countries in America, has extreme amounts of poverty. The article gives me information such as how, the infrastructure is collapsing, people are being laid off from their jobs, and drinking water in some areas is barely potable. This source also examines the growing inequality between the rich and the poor that is factoring into high poverty rates across the country. The article, “The Effect of Poverty on America's Families”, by Mark R. Rank helps me argue that the unequal wealth distribution and the extreme poverty in America is having a negative effect of families. The study explains how America’s wealth is unevenly skewed causing extreme poverty for lower class citizens. This in turn leads to families across the country to suffer the effects.

6. Source 1 “Why One of the Richest Countries on Earth Is So Poor: The Facts that Drive the Sanders Revolt” by Les Leopold
This source helps me argue that the United States, which is the wealthiest country in the world, is facing a poverty epidemic. This source explains how the increasing gap between the super rich and “the rest of us” is becoming increasingly bigger. Leopold says, “Runaway inequality is tearing apart the fabric of our society. The super-rich live in a world that no longer requires mutual reliance on common public services. Elites generally don’t use our schools, our roads, our airports. They don’t really care if our infrastructure collapses. We are cracking into two separate societies.” As the United States begins to come out of the recession, the money generated doesn’t benefit the poor, it simply is used to fund things that may or may not be useful to the people.

7. Source 2 “The Effect of Poverty on America's Families”, by Mark R. Rank
This source helps me argue that the unequal distribution of wealth and the extreme poverty in America causes negative effects to the people. This source gives me information on how the United States became a superpower and built one of the most profitable economies. While it discusses that it also explains the juxtaposition between the rich and the poor. The article explains how America has wealth distribution is very skewed. The article then correlates that this unequal wealth distribution causes families who are on the lower end of the spectrum to suffer.

8. What we can do to help Synthesis
The source “Welfare programs shown to reduce poverty in America”, by Jane Kasperkevic, helps me argue that there are ways that poverty can be stopped. This source helps explain how welfare programs, which were once seen as detrimental to the economy, have helped bring people out of poverty. This source also provides background information on welfare systems that have helped reduce poverty. The source “Three Steps We Can Take to Solve Poverty, From Someone Who Knows Firsthand”, by Tianna Gaines-Turner gives me argumentative points because it helps me argue that there is a way that poverty can be stopped and it is fairly easy to do so.

9. Source 1 “Welfare programs shown to reduce poverty in America”, by Jane Kasperkevic
This article helps me explain and argue that there are ways that poverty can be prevented. This source gives statistics on how many welfare programs have do a great job in the effort to ending poverty. For example, Kasperkevic says, “Without social security, the poverty rate for Americans 65 and older would jump nearly 40%.” She also says, “Without food stamps, the poverty rate would be 17.10% – another 8 million Americans would be living in poverty.” Both of these statistics show that government assistance programs help reduce the amount of poverty in the United States.

10. Source 2 “Three Steps We Can Take to Solve Poverty, From Someone Who Knows Firsthand”, by Tianna Gaines-Turner
This source also provides me with information that will help me argue how we can help poverty in America. This source provides ways that poverty in America can be reduced and even eradicated. The article explains how creating a living wage for workers in America will greatly diminish the amount of people who are impoverished. The article also explains how government assistance programs were seen as a crutch and and burden to the economy. It then discredits that arguments by explaining how government assistance programs will be beneficial to those in poverty.