Argument Essay The Logic Of Stupid Poor People PDF

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11/11/16 Professor Pizzino English 1201 MC “THE LOGIC OF STUPID POOR PEOPLE- ARGUMENT ESSAY” This essay is a discussion and argument about an article which describes how a crosssection of society views poor people’s spending habits; and why those habits are considered not financially savvy, nonsensical or borderline absurd. The article is written by an African American woman who attempts to rationalize why poor people, just like people of means, consume designer goods and high end labels. The author states that poor people purchase expensive goods to give themselves a better chance of dealing with gatekeepers and others with authority; who make important decisions that affect their lives. The author describes how poor individuals, despite their socioeconomic problems, will compromise important primary needs and buy a designer item. They don’t merely do it for the gratification of donning the designer good but rather it is a purchase to help them access a system that is exponentially stacked against them. The system in question, is completely at odds with the poor in mostly all facets of their lives.

The author, based on her own experiences in earlier years, clearly believes the unaffordable designer items are tools used by poor people to help them get ahead in life; especially when they did not start out on the same line in the race of life. She argues that the designer/luxury items are vehicles used by the poor to gain respect, acknowledgment and responsiveness from gatekeepers and others with positions of authority over them. The author mentions designer items can create

2 a special effect that cannot be replicated with lower end goods or brands the author discusses the sense of “flexibility” that high end goods and brands provide. The “flexibility” is being able to find jobs with relative ease or be treated with a reasonable degree of respect. The author discusses the fact that poor people have many significant issues to contend with on a daily; recurring basis, thus their lives are inherently stressful. The author demonstrates in her article how poor people use designer clothes to push or catapult themselves into opportunities that they would ordinarily not be able to access if they were to dress in non-brand clothing, for example the clothes found in a Kmart Store. Also, designer clothes have a tendency to bring about normalcy and possibly hope and a sense of belonging as discussed by Lisa Wade’s article called “Why You Should Shut Up When Poor People Buy New Nikes”. “So when someone sees someone (they think is) poor walking down the street with a brand new pair of Nikes, perhaps what they are seeing is someone who decided (whether out of a moment of weakness or not) to NOT deny themselves at least one thing; perhaps they are seeing someone who is trying to hold on to some feeling of normalcy; perhaps what they are seeing is a perfectly normal person who just wants what they want for once.” (Wade) It is important to note that high end apparel or clothing gives all people better opportunities and helps raise their profile and poor people are no exception to these assumptions. The author mentions many people believe simply being “presentable” to society is suitable for the poor. Being presentable to those who take that position connotes proper hygiene, respectable clothing and other bare necessities. The author moves on to say that being presentable in higher class work is not the bare minimum, but it is a special privilege reserved for a few. This quote from the author summarizers her views with respect to what connotes privilege. “Presentable as a sufficient condition for gainful, dignified work or successful social interactions

3 is a privilege. It’s the aging white hippie who can cut the ponytail of his youthful rebellion and walk into senior management while aging black panthers can never completely outrun the effects of stigmatization against which they were courting a revolution. Presentable is relative and, like life, it ain’t fair.” (McMillan Cottom), This sentiment from the author shows the general bias and stereotypes poor, black people must burden and how essentially they are unable to remove most of the stigma associated with their socio-economic status. The idea of using high-end clothing as a means to get ahead in life is an extremely valid and smart strategy, especially for people who are financially challenged. Studies have clearly shown that more positive views and treatment were given to people who wore designer brand apparel than people who did not wear designer brand apparel. A quote from a study done in South Korea, reinforces the fact that higher-end clothing affects the views of people generally. “In the study’s first scenario, 180 observers were shown a picture of a woman wearing a white polo shirt and asked to rate her wealth, status, attractiveness, trustworthiness, and other characteristics. Three versions of the picture were used, identical except for the shirt’s visible brand logo (luxury, non-luxury, or none). The observers of the luxury logo rated the woman significantly higher on wealth and status than did the observers of the non-luxury logo or no logo. The luxury observers also thought she deserved the highest compensation. Asked to choose her hourly pay from five ranges, over half of luxury observers chose one of the top two ranges— far greater than the 12% of non-luxury observers and 10% of no-logo observers who did the same.” (Olejarz). This quote reinstates the idea that people who wear designer clothes connote wealth and prestige and therefore deserve better treatment than their counterparts who were not identified with designer polo shirts. For example, if a female passenger on a New Jersey Transit doesn’t have her ticket when the ticket agent asks, and if she is wearing a Ralph Lauren Polo

4 shirt; there is the presumption that she could have possibly forgotten her ticket home, thus given the benefit of doubt and allowed to proceed to her destination. Maybe she did forget her ticket home or maybe she never purchased a ticket for her transportation. The point is the gatekeeper gave this passenger the benefit of the doubt based on his assumptions of her perceived socioeconomic status. She was not humiliated and told to remove herself from the train. The police were not summoned and her life, at least in this small snapshot was made better because of the gatekeeper’s assumptions. If a poor person experiences this benefit serval times a day, the poor person will be extremely successful in reaching goals and objectives. This alone helps improve one’s mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. I agree with the author that poor people buy expensive goods and designer items to access things and places they ordinarily are excluded from. I support the author’s contention that there is more to someone in the inner city buying an $800.00 Gucci belt that meets the eye. The analysis requires a precise understanding of the predicament that poor people face and how they are forced to make decisions under a crisis mode in most times. The author expresses how those choices may appear superficially as “stupid”, when in fact, these decisions are probably the best choices a person facing a life filled with poverty can make. The evidence points to the fact that poor people are constantly making difficult decisions under tremendous stress and pressure. The results of those decisions are criticized by individuals who do not have a clear understanding of the complexities of the roles race and socioeconomic status plays in America. They also fail to grasp the idea of the lack of opportunities for poor people in the richest country on earth. Everyone wants a “microwave” in America and possibly around the world, even if they do not have an electrical outlet. This “microwave” is merely a metaphor which stands for the supposition that all peoples’ wish to evolve and develop as human beings and poor people should

5 not be excluded from wanting evolvement and development. In this regards, I support the author’s position on why people who live in poverty appear to make poor decisions, when in fact, their decisions appear to be the best option possible.

“Work Cited”

6 McMillan Cottom, Tressie. "The Logic of Stupid Poor People." Tressiemc. N.p., 31 Oct. 2016. Web. 12 Nov. 2016. Olejarz, JM. "Wearing Luxury Brands Makes You Seem More Qualified for the Job." Harvard Business Review. Harvard, 24 Apr. 2015. Web. 12 Nov. 2016. Wade, Lisa. "Why You Should Shut Up When Poor People Buy New Nikes - Sociological Images." Sociological Images Why You Should Shut Up When Poor People Buy New Nikes Comments. The Society Pages, 2 Jan. 2015. Web. 12 Nov. 2016....