How poverty leads to crime

-by Akshat Silakari

Money is the root of all evil, as well as a means by which people can gauge success and personality. Money has the power to dehumanize us, lead us down a path of criminal passion, and thwart the normal growth of society. I am here to share my insights with all of you on this topic because I think talking openly about this topic can help people change their perspectives.

Poverty is the primary driver of a wide range of crimes, including robbery, murder, human trafficking, and the sale of illegal goods. Poor people are initially less likely to have access to higher education, life skills, and job training, they are more likely to be unemployed or working part-time. They are more likely to live in areas with a high criminal presence and drug abuse. Growing up in such conditions increases the chance of committing such crimes because of the despair, frustration, rage, and hopelessness that such circumstances foster. Many people opted for the lucrative drug distribution industry over the minimum wage job because it allowed them to escape poverty. These elements may make poverty more likely to result in an upward trend in criminal conduct.

In addition, a lot of the destitute regard crime as their only way out. Someone who is constantly struggling to make ends meet could resort to criminal behaviour that seem unnecessary. If one’s children are hungry and they don’t have enough money to feed them, one might resort to shoplifting to provide for their family. One might believe that the only option to escape homelessness is to make money through criminal activities if they are unable to pay their rent. Poverty creates a certain pattern in a person’s thinking, and he sees no constructive solution to the situation because he wants to make money in the quickest manner possible. Poverty has a big psychological impact on individuals; they feel unhappy and desperate, and so they decide to commit a crime because they don’t know how else to get out of poverty lawfully.

Money governs the world, which is why every crime is motivated by a desire to get rich at whatever cost. Offenders frequently do not consider the implications of their actions and the fact that they will have to pay for all they have done later; instead, they are focused on achieving their objective of generating a hefty sum of money to escape poverty and enjoy life.

Overall, I believe that governments can overcome the problem of poverty and growing crime rates by implementing the appropriate policies. Government should educate and inform citizens about the various legal ways through which they might generate money in other ethical ways. Poverty crime would not occur if there were more chances and acceptable social conditions for everyone to live and work.

Inequality is one of the major contributors of poverty. Groups of individuals that lack representation in their communities are further disadvantaged in terms of resources and opportunities due to institutional constraints.

According to UNESCO, an estimated 171 million people could escape extreme poverty if all pupils in low-income nations only possessed the most fundamental reading and writing abilities. The percentage of adults who did not complete their secondary education might reduce global poverty by more than half. Education increases knowledge and capacities, addresses some inequalities that result from marginalization, and reduces susceptibility and risk.

The government according to me is taking various steps to decrease poverty in the country, but it’s equally important that we as a community come forward and do our part to deal with this issue. There are a lot of ways through which we can volunteer to support underprivileged people starting with eradicating negative assumptions and ideas, like “People who are homeless are in their condition because they chose not to work,” or “People who are trying to work for this cause have an underlying motive of making profit”. We can volunteer to work for various organizations that provide free education and resources to underprivileged children, who also spread the right awareness about this issue. There is an old saying – “Take the first step, and the rest shall follow.”

That’s all for today and I will be sharing more such issues with all of you to keep you all updated. Thankyou for being a patient reader.