Do We Accept the Right to be Extremely Poor?

Описание: Robert Walker, currently a professor of Social Policy at the University of Oxford in England, is the author of The Shame of Poverty, a two year qualitative investigation of the nature and consequences of shame associated with poverty conducted in seven settings located in rural Uganda and India; urban China, Pakistan, Korea, the United Kingdom and Norway.
His work examines the way in which the pain of poverty extends beyond material hardship. Rather than being shameless, as is often claimed by the media, people experiencing poverty almost invariably feel ashamed at being unable to fulfill both their personal aspirations or societal expectations due to their lack of income and other resources. This reduces personal efficacy and contributes to the duration and prevalence of poverty, a process that may be aggravated by policies that stigmatize recipients of social protection.

Walker calls this a key global challenge and advocates a new response to poverty based on global human rights legislation.
Walker is also an adviser to the UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty.