The "time tax" on poor people
Many poor and black communities are so bereft of services and retail that residents are forced to pay what could be called a "time tax" -- either extra money or loss of personal time -- to access basic services.In some communities, residents must take a cab to get to the bank, rely on costly check-cashing agencies and take two buses to get to the supermarket, said Dr. Kathryn Neckerman, a Columbia University sociologist.
On average, she said, low-income families earn $15,000 a year and large chunks of it are gobbled up by, for example, spending up to $2,000 a year on the check-cashing service.
"Time is money," said Dr. Neckerman, and all the time and costs put pressure on families. "We need to think about the time tax."
Read the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette report here.
posted by Jacqueline Dowd @ 2:50 PM
10 Comments:
you truly ARE amazing. I have thought this so many times, how it sucks for some people and they accept it as part of life. Very very troubling. Stepping on the poor and disenfranchised to make a buck. Ugly. I'm grateful to you for hi-liting this criminal practice. If it's NOT criminal it SHOULD be, huh?
It is extremely troubling. I am glad you posted this.
I avoided the 'check cashing' places by using a Netspend.com debit account, and paying a monthly fee to avoid $1.00 and $2.00 charges at point of sales like registers.
This is a good subject for peer to peer mentoring for anyone working with unsheltered and those 'stabilizing' out of the system.
Thanks for pointing out that article. I had no idea check-cashing could be that expensive. I wonder if people find other alternatives when there's not a bank around.
Ms. Dowd two words come to light whenever I read your blog: "Blog Godess." Thank you for this timely article. It will be the center piece of my post regarding the recent Mayoral election here in Jacksovnille this past month.
http://trumansconscience.blogspot.com
Welcome back, Michael!
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Those check cashing services need to be regulated much more than they currently are. They are robbing the poor.
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