The lies we tell ourselves: ending comfortable myths about poverty

(A report from the Baptist Union of Great Britain, the Methodist Church, the United Reformed Church and the Church of Scotland. I'm an ethnically Jewish atheist, but I think that EVERYONE needs to read this document!!!)


In 1753 John Wesley, the founder of Methodism
said, “So wickedly, devilishly false is that common
objection, ‘They are poor, only because they are
idle’.”Yet today many churchgoers and members
of the general public alike have come to believe
that the key factors driving poverty in the UK
are the personal failings of the poor – especially
‘idleness’. How did this come about?

The myths exposed in this report, reinforced
by politicians and the media, are convenient
because they allow the poor to be blamed for
their poverty, and the rest of society to avoid
taking any of the responsibility. Myths hide the
complexity of the true nature of poverty in the
UK. They enable dangerous policies to be imposed
on whole sections of society without their full
consequences being properly examined. This
report aims to highlight some comfortable myths,
show how they have come to prominence and test
them against serious evidence....

The report begins with a case study, Troubled
Families and Troubled Statistics, showing how
facts and evidence were bent to meet the needs
of policymakers. The reputations of society’s most
disadvantaged families became collateral damage
in the rush to defend a new policy. Perhaps we are
not surprised by this but we should be appalled.

The myths challenged are not a comprehensive list
but were chosen because of their prominence in
public debate, and their widespread acceptance...

(And much, much more, with lots of crucial factual information!)

http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/files/truth_and_lies_report_final.pdf