Socio 101_take Home 2

Vanessa Mak

Sociology 101 – Take Home Exam # 2

2005 – 00875 On Social Differentiation In the Philippines, there is a very wide gap between the rich and the poor. Distribution of wealth, power, and other resources is unequal. Those who belong to the lower class are much greater in numbers than those who place in the upper strata of the social structure. The social structure has become a means of controlling access to material goods like money, houses, cars, and the non-material, such as power and respect. Groups of people are ranked according to their occupation and income, housing, and educational attainment. The working class and the lower class are at a great disadvantage in terms of these, having little economic power. Baclaran is one such place where indicators of poverty and crime abound. Baclaran is similar to Divisoria and Quiapo, congested with people and stalls. Many vendors can be found along the LRT. Common goods being sold are cellphone accessories, dvds, cds, shirts, pants, shoes, fruits, etc. They are either sold off the street or in stalls inside the low buildings along the LRT. Most of the stalls and stands are owned by the Taiwanese and the Muslims. The Taiwanese and the Muslims that can be found here do not escape stereotypes. The typical Taiwanese you will see is a hard worker, difficult to haggle with when they have already settled on a price. They persistently offer their goods (clothing, shoes, jewelry, are common) and usually sell them for wholesale. On the other hand, the Muslims, who are also known to be diligent workers, are commonly found selling dvds at the price of P50 to P60. Being resourceful, they are sometimes known to fool costumers into buying reconditioned cellphone units that look brand new but actually have malfunctions. Baclaran, like Divisoria and Quiapo, is a good place to find cheap bargains and wholesales. However there are also compromises. The dust, pollution, and visible trash altogether, make for an unclean environment. There are also the occasional thieves who snatch cellphones, purses, or jewelry when people are not cautious while walking or sitting inside the jeep. The narrow streets in Baclaran lead to small baranggays. The houses are constructed very close to each other and usually two to three stories high. There is a creek

at the back which has become a garbage dump, making it a breeding ground for denguecausing mosquitoes and big rats. Makeshift houses have been put up along the creek. From time to time, violence and crime can be seen on the streets. There would be the loud drunks who cause disturbances and break beer bottles late into the night. Sometimes, two people would break into a fight in broad daylight. As for crimes, there are thefts and holdups. There are those who enter other people’s houses and steal items (‘akyat-bahay’). People who are walking on the streets in the middle of the night are approached by suspicious people, who end up threatening people with knives or guns if they do not hand over their wallets or cellphones. Sources of income for people living here vary. Some opt to establish small businesses such as carinderia or sari-sari stores. The capital is just enough to pay for electric and water bills, for everyday living, and for restocking store supplies. Those who are better off have built houses with several rooms that they lend out to others (‘paupahan’). People are very poor that there are those who would turn to any sort of business or racket in order to earn money. Some people disguise as beggars and roam around asking for sympathy and money. Others do lottery, gambling, or 5/6. Sometimes, salesmen go from door to door, offering goods, which unknowingly might have been stolen. There are also those who solicit money from their neighbors by giving out envelopes and saying that a relative of theirs has just died or is very sick or they even use the name of the church, telling others that they are doing charity work. Authorities are known to abuse their power. At times, people get arrested by the police without a warrant of arrest. They are arrested without evidence, accused on the basis of possessing illegal firearms or drugs, and made to pay money. Even if there is evidence, but as long as they pay the price, their name can be cleared. Sometimes, the police are also known to do intermittent warehouse raids just to make money off illegal goods (usually pirated dvds and cds) that have been confiscated. Recently, the squatters’ houses that can be found directly below the LRT have been demolished. Many people have become homeless in an instant. The displaced squatters build temporary homes in the receding areas. Still, they have no choice but to be nomads who move from place to place every day. The government has not provided an alternative place for these homeless to relocate to.

Poverty is the state of not having enough resources to take care of basic needs such as food, shelter, and clothing. This defines the situation that can be observed in Baclaran. It can not only be seen in Baclaran but in many other areas as well. In these places, there is little room for upward mobility and so the poor remain “poor”. There are several theories attempting to explain poverty. The social Darwinian theory of poverty explains poverty in terms of the behavior and attitudes. The poor continue to live in substandard conditions because they do not do anything to alleviate their circumstances; they indulge in gambling and drinking; they had no goals and aspiration. Basically, the social Darwinian theory follows the belief that the poor are destined to be at the bottom of the social ladder. To some degree, the poor may remain poor because they indulge in unproductive activity, but who does not have ambitions or the desire to rise from poverty? The behavior and attitudes of the poor are greatly affected by their economic circumstances, which they cannot do anything about, most of the time. It cannot also be helped if people were born into poverty. Furthermore, the state of being poor pushes them to commit crimes such as theft and robbery. In relation to this, there is also the situational theory of poverty, which supports that the poor behave the way their situation (access to resources and opportunities) does not allow for them to assume the lifestyle of the middle class. The culture of poverty by Oscar Lewis holds the same line of view but assumes that there is an existing subculture of the poor, who embody the same set of values and norms. Finally, the structural theory of poverty assumes that poverty is cause by the economic structure of the society, which gives rise to inequality. The situation of the poor population in the Philippines can be said to have come from a combination of all these theories.

Citation for theories of poverty: Islam, S. (2005) Sociology of Poverty : Quest for a New Horizon. Bangladesh e-Journal of Sociology, 2 (1) : January 2005. Retrieved March 2, 2008 from: http://www.bangladeshsociology.org/BEJS%20-%202.1.4%20-%20Sardar.pdf