Fighting Poverty in the United States has been an ongoing battle for years. It has left many individuals on the streets, living with food insecurities, lack of healthcare, and more. The US pays a minimum wage of 7.25 per hour and according to Washington University, 30% of low-wage workers (16 million people) live in families earning below 150% of the poverty line. Minimum wage jobs do not aid individuals to get out of poverty and would ensure the poor stay poor. Fighting poverty should not be up for debate because many people's lives are at risk due to lack of pay.  

The current Minimum wage pay is not enough to make ends meet. Many families are struggling to make a decent living with the amount of money they are able to bring home. However, raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025 could deliver raises for 27 million workers and lift 900,000 Americans above the poverty threshold according to Eric Morath, a New York Times writer. Poverty has been an ongoing problem for years and recently the discussions of raising the minimum wage have been debated but it shouldn't be. This increase in pay would benefit many Americans and allow them to have a better quality of life. Parents struggling to pay for their daily necessities wouldn't have to live paycheck to paycheck anymore. This helps give people a better living situation for themselves and their families. 

Raising the minimum wage is a gateway to alleviating poverty. If the minimum wage was increased there would be a decrease in poverty because people wouldn't struggle to make ends meet. According to Binyamin Appelbaum, a writer for the New York Times states “a full-time worker earning the minimum wage does not make enough to afford a typical one-bedroom apartment in almost any part of the country — let alone college at current prices.” With the pay that has been given to workers, we can see that minimum wage isn't even enough for someone to afford an apartment. They also can't afford to go further in their education because of the high cost of college. How can opposers expect the poor to get better pay by getting a better degree/job if they can't afford higher education? This is what keeps poverty thriving. The lack of pay and access to education at a low cost is what keeps the people in poverty. Raising the minimum wage would open doors to a high quality of life and education which will lessen poverty. 

The current minimum wage does not provide the basic necessities for those who are living in poverty and trying to get out. This is why the minimum wage needs to be raised to a higher amount. Money plays a huge role in people's daily lives and for some money comes easier than others. The overall goal if the minimum wage is risen would be to get people out of poverty and get the poor into stable conditions. No one should have to work paycheck to paycheck in hopes they have enough to feed their families and have a home. This will overall deteriorate the quality of life in these individuals if nothing is done.