The poor of America
Around the world, the poor look at Americans with a degree of envy, aware of the high living standards and rampant consumerism of so many citizens of the United States. But in fact many Americans are poor and the number of such poor Americans is growing.
According to the latest figures from the US Census Bureau, 43.6 million people or 14.3% of the population were in poverty in 2009, up from 39.8 million in 2008. This is the third consecutive annual rise. The hardest-hit are African-Americans and Hispanics.
One of the more alarming statistics in the Census Bureau report showed that the number without health insurance rose from 46.3 million in 2008 to 50.7 million in 2009. President Obama introduced a healthcare reform package earlier this year but most of the provisions are not due to kick in until 2014.
More information here.