Local opinion: Tucson poverty project reveals invisible labels

Poverty is a demon with horns much larger than a hole in someone's pocket or an overdue utility bill. Poverty is an all-consuming, dehumanizing, paralyzing label.

As part of the U of A class on poverty, my fellow students and I interviewed close to 300 residents from the 29th Street Thrive Zone and the Thrive in the ‘05 Zone as residents shared their stories, opinions, and feelings to help educate Tucson officials. Poverty is a label Tucson can erase by starting in neighborhoods and fixing potholes, adding streetlights, decreasing dangerous activity, and encouraging community relationships.

In "Poverty, By America" by Matthew Desmond, he states, “Poverty reduces people born for better things…think of how many more of us would be empowered to thrive if we tore down the walls, how much more vibrant and forward-moving our country would be,” (Desmond, 2023:161). Bumpy roads, dark streets, needles on the front lawn, and neighbors with no first names keep our future leaders isolated from society. What if the city showed people they cared? Could the trajectory of a person’s livelihood change? I argue yes, it could.

From local news outlets to Facebook rant pages, the Tucson pothole crisis is decades old. One middle-aged individual told me they have potholes in their neighborhood that are older than they are. The city picking and choosing the neighborhoods to pave impacts one's dignity. Hiring more people to fix the potholes in every neighborhood would allow for a feeling of worthiness and job opportunities amongst residents. How is one supposed to believe they can change their situations if the very path they start their day on is broken and less than others due to zip code?

An evening dog walk, a bike around the block, and a trip to the park are all things interviewees expressed wanting to do. However, these are not possibilities in the dark. Residents can text Tucson311 to complain about the lack of streetlights, but the city has yet to listen. With the addition of more street lights, healthy habits could be formed, increasing routine. This stability in one's life could lead to the strength to conquer new goals.

According to our dataset, 40.15% of participants said yes to violent crime being an issue in their neighborhood. Additionally, 35.48% of participants said they do not find their neighborhood to be close-knit. To solve both these problems, I think organizing a neighborhood watch group, with the help of more police stopping crimes when they see them, would be a helpful solution. Through these watch groups, neighbors can also meet one another. Having a connection within your community improves your ability to feel worth, knowing you matter, and have others in your corner.

To be seen as human, treated as human, and loved as human are necessities and entitlements everyone deserves. While clean lit up streets with no crime and friendly neighbors cannot alone erase the word poverty, it is a step in a better direction. Sometimes all people need are other humans to say, “you got this,” and “look, we believe in you.” The city has the power to bestow positive invisible labels on all its residents.