Twenty Percent of American Children Living in Poverty

Yes, you read that correctly. 20% of children in the wealthiest and most powerful democracy in the world are living in poverty. And that statistic is based on 2009 numbers; given the state of the economy since then, there likely are more than 20% living in poverty.

This kind of makes me re-think some of my own philanthropic choices. Should I be giving to overseas disasters, or should I focus on the DISASTER of poverty that is happening in our own country? And what exactly should I give to? Poverty is a complex problem with complex causes and impacts: should I give to hunger-related organizations? Vocational training for parents, so that they can lift themselves and their children out of poverty?

Read more about these newly-released statistics HERE, or get the original data from the annual KIDS COUNT survey HERE.