Is pretending to be a middle-class justified when you’re really wealthy? I was talking to a friend when he casually mentioned his difficulties of life being born into an elite family; the way he expressed his idea of poverty made me think about it. So here I am writing this article to express my views on pseudo-poverty.
Born with a silver spoon and still complaining about life problems; ones that money can easily solve? Isn’t that wrong? Many celebrities and well-off public figures often talk about their struggle stories, which being from a middle-class family seems unrelatable. Even when they were born into highly privileged and influential families, they have a hard time admitting that. They keep talking about how they have faced rationing, how their parents did not do them any favors, or how they struggled financially or otherwise to reach the stardom or luxurious life they have. The more privileged they are, the more such people seem inconsiderate of real poverty issues. Their struggle is not questionable. Everyone has their journey, experiences, or life struggles. What is questionable is selling those stories of pseudo-poverty that don’t fit well while carrying a really expensive bag or riding all their life in a luxury car.
In my opinion, telling stories of real-life and honest struggles would inspire everyone. If you truly wish to make a difference with your opinion, talk about real poverty, contribute to the cause, and help the poor section of society make ends meet. Although some people are already doing that, what’s appalling is that everyone nowadays tries to fit into the label of middle-class society to sound relatable to the mass audience or sell their stories. Poverty is not something to sell, it is a serious issue. Isn’t it gut-wrenching to see underprivileged families doing odd jobs for just a day’s meal? Children are picking up garbage or working as servants at many hotels to help their families make a livelihood. Elderly people work as day-wage laborers to sustain their lives. Many of them are begging for money due to lack of jobs. Even freshwater or clean food becomes a luxury for them!
If we look at the statistics of poverty in Bihar alone, the data suggests a significantly high number of poor people living in the Indian state. As per a report by India Today, Bihar has the highest number of deprived people with a percentage of 33.76% in 2019-21. However, the poverty rate has gone down by 7% (26.59% in 2022-23). Sure, the government is taking some measures to generate a source of income for them. However, the underprivileged section of society does exist, even in developed nations like the United States. The official rate of poverty in the United States is 11.5%.
After all, wealth is a thing which is not equally distributed. The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. It’s satirical that the privileged class is not happy with what they have. Perhaps, money can’t buy everything, and something as superficial as pseudo-poverty does exist!