Economy
What I Learned From a Poverty Simulation
To start, it was a far more sobering experience than I expected.
BALTIMORE—I must admit I was hesitant when I saw it on the agenda for the New Partners for Smart Growth conference here: "Poverty Simulation, 2-5 p.m." How could this not be contrived or voyeuristic, somehow? I signed up nonetheless.
The role-playing exercise, choreographed by the Missouri Association for Community Action and supported by Kaiser Permanente, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and the Local Government Commission, turned out to be a vivid experience, focused on how stressful it is to be poor in U.S. cities.