Return-Path: <nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id f4UL6Gf16460; Wed, 30 May 2001 17:06:16 -0400 (EDT) Date: Wed, 30 May 2001 17:06:16 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <003001c0e94c$2d7e1d80$23bffea9@hppav> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "Mary Ann Corley" <macorley1@earthlink.net> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-POVRACELIT:496] X-posted from the Nifl-Homeless list X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4522.1200 Status: O Content-Length: 1752 Lines: 40 Dear Subscribers: The following link will lead you to a New York Times review on "Nickel and Dimed," a book written by Barbara Ehrenreich. Ms. Ehrenreich decided to do personal research on what it means to live on a minimum wage salary in the U.S., and she spent a year living for three months in different regions, working low-wage jobs and trying to keep afloat. What she writes is interesting in two ways: Firstly, it sheds a personal and anecdotal light on the current issues faced by people working in the U.S. without education or specific skill training. I'm not sure whether this is a common thread among the people you serve, but it certainly is at Homes for the Homeless, and it might be a useful place to begin a conversation with clients to assess what skills they may need to avoid that situation when they leave a shelter. Secondly, (and a slightly more theoretical analysis) Ms. Ehrenreich's methods raise the question of whether this investigation, or this method of research in general, is appropriate. Given that Ms. Ehrenrich was writing from a position of privilege (she could always go back to her profession, return to her home to write up her research results, etc.), is her research as valid. And just as important - what impact does her stepping into the world of low-wage jobs and then stepping out of it for the purposes of her book have on the people who don't have that luxury, who have to continue on in low-wage professions long-term? Just throwing this out as a possible topic for discussion, and wondering what your ideas are. The review was written by Dorothy Gallagher, and can be found at: http://www.nytimes.com/books/01/05/13/reviews/010513.13gallagt.html Read on! Jocelyn Gottlieb hn4061@handsnet.org
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