War on the Impoverished

Lately, it seems to be more of a fact that instead of a War on Poverty, many governmental institutions are instead waging an artificial war on the Impoverished. While people remain convinced that this is a conspiracy against the poor, to keep them under the radar screen, and to take away their rights, I believe that is simply a misuse of the law by unscrupulous people rather than a specific conspiracy. I am of the opinion that putting these stories in the public eye is the best way to prevent them from happening again.

One case states stands out to me in particular in that the situation seems like something you would expect to find in the late 1800's and not in the new (and supposedly better) millennium.

According to the New York Times, a single mother in Michigan was ordered by the court to retroactively pay a juvenile detention center for keeping her teenaged son. Ms. Nowlin, who had recently been laid off from her low-income job, told the court she was unable to pay for the fine, and was then sent to prison for a sentence of 30 days. Incredibly, she was also ordered to pay for her own incarceration. Some believe this situation reflects the mentality of a debtor's prison. The underlying idea behind this is definitely insidious in nature as it reflects the idea that poverty is a crime.

Even worse than this, was that Ms. Nowlin was refused a court appointed attorney on grounds which remain unclear to me. The situation was resolved only with the support of the ACLU.

Unfortunately, her case is not an isolated incident. While the ACLU has a reputation primarily for protecting free speech, the organization's contributions to society as whole are immeasurable. Providing equal protection under the law also falls under the ACLU's jurisdiction. For more information about the ACLU and how you can help them in their fight to ensure equality for all people, please check out their website here.  For more detailed information about Ms. Nowlin's particular case (and others like it), please read here.