Blog 3 - Amazing Grace by Kozol - Argument

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    In Amazing Grace Kozol explores the lives and experiences of several varied individuals living in South Bronx, he argues that the suffering happening within the highly segregated and poorest district in the country is not the fault of those who live there but the system as a whole. 

    Because of the living conditions within South Bronx, with extreme rates of AIDS, horrible living conditions and prevalent drug use, it is impossible for many to escape their situations. This is only made worse by the city's relocation of a large homeless population to the area or the installation of a medical incinerator that residents oppose.  Even when people win opportunities in this place, because of the difficulties they are facing they often don't come to fruition, such as the man that got a college scholarship but was an addict and died before he could act upon it. In turn this results in an overall feeling of resignation in the people living in these communities, not just in adults but in the children who have been raised in these conditions as well. 

    About 1/5 of all the people living there have legitimate jobs, most live off of SSI, prostitution, or selling drugs. Most can barely afford necessities and have no savings to dedicate towards higher education, making it even more difficult for families to escape their situation. 


   
 Kozol argues against the above rule of thought by going through the stories of any adults living in South Bronx who had no real say in what led them into intense poverty. Being sent to a segregated school and receiving a lower quality education has a profound impact on people and devastating illnesses like cancer are not choices that anyone would make for themself, including poor people. Most people living in these conditions are behaving rationally by prioritizing their own safety and doing the best they can for their families each day. Everyone has the want to better their situation but they simply don't have the time or energy or money to do so and the state has done nothing to assist in such betterment.

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