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Claire Marie Kuhn, Pittsburgh

Post Immersion Paper

November 8, y

Urban Plunge

The Pittsburgh Urban Plunge immersion in the beginning of January 2017 was truly an

eye opening three day experience. Every night after our various actives during the day, the group

came together to discuss what we took away and what we had learnt from the “plunges” of that

day. Pittsburgh is unique in that way, as the plunge is not merely a few stops but actually 14

different interactions with charities and other organizations dealing with urban poverty. Each

stop had its own unique story to tell us about poverty and what they did to either help those

experiencing it or address the systems continuing the cycle of poverty. The overwhelming

takeaway every night was a sense of surprise at the “normality” of it all. First, when actually

interacting with those experiencing poverty while visiting soup kitchens and homeless shelters,

we gained a sense of how these people are no different from us, even in the worst of

circumstances. Secondly, when visiting organization after organization, and after learning that

Pittsburgh has so many non-profits working to help those in poverty, we realized how prevalent

and simply “normal” poverty was to the urban Pittsburgh community. This is just scratching the

surface at what the plunge did to open my eyes to urban poverty, but it is a good start. To

understand the root causes of poverty, one must first knowledge that it is not some strange

phenomena. It is a tangible reality for many of my neighbors in my dear city of Pittsburgh, and

the Urban Plunge did an excellent job of opening my eyes to this.

While it was still a deeply shocking realization to experience, the Urban Plunge

preparatory class lectures and homework had certainly taught me many lessons about the root
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causes of Urban Plunge. I saw examples of many of the things we had discovered in class

throughout Pittsburgh. For example, in Tattoos on the Heart, Fr. Greg Boyle’s explanation of the

humanity and dignity that existed even in the worst areas of LA, echoed in Pittsburgh. While

visiting the Jubilee Soup Kitchen, two little different shouting matches and scuffles broke out.

This soup kitchen is located in the Hill District, historically one of the worst areas of Pittsburgh,

known for its high levels of poverty and crime. It is mainly a black neighborhood, but the

demographics are changing as more immigrants come to Pittsburgh and choose to reside there.

As we sat and talked to the people there, and the murmurs of gang activity were in the

background, I came to a better understanding of why this was occurring. As Fr. Greg notes, these

poorer young people have nowhere to go and nothing better to do. Often unemployed, they are

very lost and trying to find their way in the world. At Jubilee, I heard many people discussing

which warming station or soup kitchen they were going to go to next. They all lacked a general

sense of purpose. It is easy to see why criminal activity could start up in an area like this, as it

gives people a community to identify with. Fr. Greg Boyle’s stories about the young men who

came to his L.A. parish really touched my heart, and meeting Pittsburgh’s version of them in this

“terrible” neighborhood, that most Pittsburgh residents avoid, did as well. If more of them were

provided with jobs, as Fr. Greg did for his boys, I’m positive those scuffles would occur less

frequently at the soup kitchen. Boredom is corrosive to the morale of any one.

Another reading I saw echoed in many different things on the plunge was Nickel and

Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich. Many of my discussions with the men staying in the homeless

shelter, or those at the soup kitchen, left me walking away in awe at their hardships. I often

questioned whether I would be able to keep going if handed the same circumstances these people

were day after day. Barbara tested that very question, and in a way, I did too during the
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simulation game we played for the Urban Plunge homework. The smallest of decisions during

the game, and the tiniest of circumstantial change, often had huge financial consequences.

During the simulation game, I “lost” and was not able to make it to the end of the month and pay

my rent. Barbara came to a similar conclusion, realizing quickly that she could not handle more

expensive rent at one place, so she sought out other options. One of the men I spoke with at the

soup kitchen said, “I just gotta get better at keeping $10 in my pocket”. Once one begins living

from nickel to dime, it is hard to get back on one’s feet because of life throwing many different

road blocks in one’s way.

Throughout this class, one main idea that I have come to understand is that falling into

poverty can happen to anyone, and once it happens, things are lined up against you. This

systematic failure that harms the less fortunate is something that resonated deeply during the

Plunge. The CST principle “Option for the Poor and Vulnerable” states that “while the common

good embraces us all, those who are in greatest need deserve preferential concern”. This idea

would be seen as radical, I believe, in standard politics. The impoverished people are never the

first on the list for help or change. One organization that embraces it and has sought to change

the system is Crossroads. This organization takes kids living in very poor neighborhoods with

poor education choices and offers them a chance out of the cycle of poverty through education.

As one of the economic videos we watched earlier for our plunge homework stated, education is

a root cause of the cycle of poverty. Schools in poorer districts have significantly less funding

and thus less resources. Crossroads seeks to alleviate that by helping these kids apply and attend

Catholic high schools. Financial handouts are not their only aim, for they include the full circle

of support an under privileged student needs to make it through high school, including tutoring

and counseling. When we visited Crossroads and heard about the success of their program, I was
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really uplifted. The organization was striking at one of the root causes of poverty and slowly

chipping away at its hold in the Pittsburgh area. They had graduated over 500 students from

high school, and most had gone on to college. They stressed how we must treat education as a

priority when we try and help others around us who have less opportunity. I loved their message

of giving as much support as needed for each student, because so much more factors into

graduating from high school than just finances.

Many politician talk about the idea of equal opportunity being a goal of the system.

Never before the Urban Plunge did I understand exactly what that meant. The Thomas Merton

Center was very distinguishing in that factor. We visited their Pittsburgh office and learned about

all the social justice issues they address. Catholic Social Thought not only talks about serving the

common good, but also the rights and responsibilities that creatures made in God’s image

deserve. The issues that the Thomas Merton Center deals with are when those rights are denied

for the less fortunate, and the center serves as a “voice for the voiceless”. Social justice issues are

no doubt a root cause of poverty and the Thomas Merton Center is doing a good job of

attempting to make systematic change by organizing around these issues. For example, they

spoke of the lead in the water around Pittsburgh as one of their main focus’ for this winter. They

said that many of the wealthier areas of Pittsburgh have already had their pipes replaced and this

lead removed. The Center spoke of how this is violating the dignity of those experiencing

poverty, as they deserve to drink clean water just as much as others living in nicer areas of

Pittsburgh. This type of system is a root cause of poverty because lead in water has been shown

to affect children’s health and mental wellness greatly. Children are more likely to develop

learning disorders and other complications when drinking water contaminated with lead. While

the soup kitchens and homeless shelters we visited “give an option for the poor and vulnerable”,
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The Thomas Merton Center goes upriver and attempts to stop root causes of poverty and from

those options being necessary. I found that the center’s greatest message was their idea of not

only understanding the people facing these issues, but respecting them. It resonated deeply with

what we had read in preparation for the plunge and with what CST states. Everyone deserves to

be treated with dignity, and that is what the The Thomas Merton Center strives for.

These few spots I mentioned that we visited while on the Urban Plunge just skim the

surface of the magnitude of things being accomplished by dedicated servants to the poor in

Pittsburgh. One of my fears going into this plunge was becoming disenchanted with service work

and overwhelmed by all the people who needed help. While it was certainly overwhelming at

points, I can now say that rather than becoming disenchanted, I feel reinvigorated and

empowered to make change and serve others. The Urban Plunge demonstrated that the root

causes of poverty are powerful, but that through service and love with God’s help, poverty can

be lessened day by day.