I live in a mixed-race, marginalized community where there is a lot of poverty, substance abuse and a lack of family planning. I work with children who live in homes made up of multiple siblings from multiple fathers, and one mother.
The other day I was thinking about family planning in marginal communities. In my thought process, I started from a very privileged place and once I realized that I was starting from there, I backed up and started thinking around that original question only to find I was in fact asking the wrong question.
In this audio podcast I talk about these issues as I drive from one end of Pittsburgh, PA to another. I mention “Maslow’s pyramid,” which is a graphic chart that illustrates his “Hierarchy of Needs.” Most people in America never really get to the place that allows for self-actualization. Most of us barely get through ‘Safety Needs’ the layer, second from the bottom of the pyramid.
So, how are we as a society going to move forward? As we keep saying over and over again, it really requires us all to abandon the political system that keeps us poor and unhealthy, and to start supporting one another through mutual aid. A good dose of compassion and empathy will also help fertilize our growth to self-actualization.
Listen to “Needs.”
Read about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html
posted by: JP Collins