Vanderstaay introduces case studies of two African American families. Describe their

Question

differences in terms of socio-economic class and how this factor affects the families'
experiences with jobs, housing, and the medical institutions.

How does class affect their
ways of coping with homelessness?
What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Karla: Low SES, "welfare" mother who could not afford to work or she would lose
benefits and still not be with her children. Nonetheless, AFDC was insufficient and left
her with homelessness, so she stayed in a condemned building, slept on the streets,
suffered in the cold with her children, often went hungry, survived on handouts and even
stealing. She had two babies out of wedlock and her mom had thrown her out. She coped
by living below the margin of dignity and need, used any service (medical) that she could
get. The Armstrongs came for a situation of relative plenty, and were "wiped out" by the
company going out of business and medical bills. Karla could not work and live on the
little money she could make as an untrained and inexperienced worker, and came from a
long history of need. Mark was devastated to be offered low pay jobs, when he was
qualified and had experience at a good paying job. Mark's middle class background gave
him more resources, and his connections were better than Karla's.
Linda also contributed to the family income and stability. They are likely to be able to
work their way back from the precarious situation, in spite of the circumstances right
now. Karla is not likely to improve her lot very much. Class has the effect of denying a
variety of resources to the poorest class, and providing more reliable resources to the
higher SES group. Much of the effect is grounded in educational background and
previous life-style.