Is poverty a human rights issue in the United States?
Yes. The United States has signed several international documents that include freedom from poverty in their understanding of human rights. In fact, the United States was a primary actor in the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As original signer of this document, the United States has clearly stated it believes in a comprehensive vision of human rights, including: Article 25: Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing, and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control. The United Nations has done ample work recently on human rights and extreme poverty, including looking at extreme poverty in the United States.
