"For Millions Of Americans, No Money = No Christmas In 2020"
by Epic Economist
"Just as we've seen through the course of the year, this holiday season is being marked by tragic events. Days before Christmas and New Year's Eve, millions have been freshly unemployed as the new restrictions are forcing numerous businesses to shut down once again. The traditional banquets and holiday dinner celebrations are being replaced by increasingly empty cardboard boxes distributed by swamped food banks across the country. Demand for food assistance this year has expanded by 60%, considering multiple American families have fallen deep into poverty and are now right at the bottom of the economic food chain. However, jobless workers aren't the only ones suffering from food insecurity. According to a new study, a considerable amount of active workers is having their hours cut and earning 20 percent less than they used to before the crisis burst.
For that reason, recent reports are describing that during this festive period, several households will have absolutely nothing under their Christmas trees. In fact, those who can still place a tree in their homes are amongst the privileged ones, since more and more people are fearing the coming evictions and already started to live in their cars. The rental debt accumulated so far is surpassing the 70 billion dollar range, which signalizes that next year much more economic pain will be registered, especially because of the grim economic prospects that are causing gradually lower reinsertions on the labor market. In this video, we expose the reality of the millions who won't have Christmas this year as well as the staggering level of financial instability our citizens have been coping with.
In modern times, we have never witnessed so much pain, despair, and poverty amongst jobless Americans as we are seeing right now. In a time when festivities used to warm our citizens' spirits, a large share of our population is undergoing heart-breaking situations all across the country. Numerous unemployed Americans are experiencing acute financial desperation. According to the latest estimates, an additional 8 million people have fallen into poverty since the summer. At this stage of the crisis, millions of households have thousands in back rent debt, and in about 10 days they are bound to face a renewed threat of eviction as the CDC's order is programed to lapse on the 31st.
Unless dramatic action is taken to avoid the occurrence of an unprecedented wave of evictions at the beginning of 2021, the suffering that our citizens are going to experience is going to be off the charts. According to recent projections, nearly 16% of Americans, or about 52 million people, were already among the ranks of the poor in November. However, the poverty ranks aren't being solely constituted by unemployed workers. In reality, a substantial figure of those who are still working had their hours cut, and aren’t able to make as much in tips, commissions, or bonuses as they did before the recession has started. Latest forecasts suggest that employment among those who are paid less than $27,000 a year was still down 20% from pre-outbreak levels in mid-November.
A similar survey found that a whopping 42 percent of U.S. households have affirmed their income is way below what it was before the outbreak struck. The survey also discovered that most workers saw their incomes decline as a result of shutdowns, layoffs, pay cuts or reduced hours. Additionally, almost 85 percent of the polled are worried about a lasting negative impact on their income moving forward. Evidently, with lockdowns depressing what is left of our economy, it is understandable why so many Americans can feel harder days approaching.
Small businesses are being obliterated while big corporations keep struggling to make it through the winter by reducing their activities or temporarily closing down their stores and cutting off their staff. Even leading tech companies such as Apple just announced the closure of all of their stores in the entire state of California. Every day it passes, more restrictions are issued and more individuals feel the weight of the financial strains brought by the repercussions of the health crisis. Without money, several households disclosed they won't have ways to celebrate Christmas. In some cases, nothing is going under their trees, there simply will not be any presents at all.
Painful stories are being documented everywhere. The enormous financial difficulties experienced by millions of Americans have pushed several charity and assistance programs over the edge. Toy drives and food banks are reporting shortages of volunteers and donations, as demand continues to climb. This Christmas is going to be an exceptionally bitter one, and the worst part is the year ahead is not looking promising at all. This is what an economic depression looks like, and what we have experienced so far is just the start."
