Marriage Not the Only Route to Economic Security
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Marriage is considered a critical tool for fighting poverty, but it can also be a sensitive topic that provokes intense debate. In the past, Spotlight has featured exclusive commentaries examining the importance of marriage in tying families together and producing better outcomes for children, as well as providing legal and tax benefits. However, a landmark report released last week by the Half in Ten campaign asserts that it isn۪t necessarily marriage that makes the difference it’s dual incomes.
The report,Restoring Shared Prosperity: Strategies to Cut Poverty and Expand Economic Growth, suggests that recognizing and encouraging dual incomes in whatever form they exist significantly improves a family۪s poverty status. It calls for increasing the number of household earners and good jobs for single breadwinners rather than focusing solely on encouraging marriage to gain economic stability. In fact, the report finds that poverty rates for households headed by a single mother drop from 40.7 percent to 14 percent when the mother has full-time, year-round employment.
The report also points to the need for flexible workplaces and work supports such as child care to help move families out of poverty.
The marriage findings are part of a larger report that lays out strategies for expanding the middle class and promoting opportunity, starting the clock on the campaign۪s goal of cutting poverty in half in ten years. Restoring Shared Prosperity was released at an event last week that included a keynote address from U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and a panel moderated by author Barbara Ehrenreich.
Noting the growing national focus on poverty and income inequality as exemplified by the “Occupy Wall Street” demonstrations, Ehrenreich said that the conversation is changing and progress is increasingly possible. “We saw for so long that poverty has been isolated as a problem of someone else,” Ehrenreich said. “We can۪t do that anymore at this moment.”
Along with the report, Half in Ten has compiled the following regularly updated resources for advocates, press and policymakers:
– Interactive website to access the report۪s data
Posted by Tamanna
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Here at Out of the Spotlight, we offer a behind-the-scenes look at the latest news and information essential to anyone working to fight poverty. From key political appointees to clashes over policy, we cover the news that doesn’t always make the evening news. Check out Out of the Spotlight for our take on the twists and turns of the latest political developments and their impact on poverty reduction. Topics and ideas are welcome! Just contact mlaracy@aecf.org or watersboots@hotmail.com