The High Cost of Poverty

In honor Labor Day, here's something to think about:

Could You Afford to Be Poor?

But the high cost of poverty was brought home to me within a few days of my entry into the low-wage life, when, slipping into social-worker mode, I chastised a co-worker for living in a motel room when it would be so much cheaper to rent an apartment. Her response: Where would she get the first month’s rent and security deposit it takes to pin down an apartment? The lack of that amount of capital – probably well over $1000 – condemned her to paying $40 a night at the Day’s Inn.

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