Ehrenreich inspres local resident

Dec. 9, 2004
By Maureen Schulte
Staff Writer

Catt Foy, a Davenport resident, was not always struggling to get by.  That is, until she got divorced and was left with a house and two children to support. Before she knew it, she couldn’t pay the bills or buy food for her family.

She eventually lost her house and was forced to take jobs as a waitress and bartender in order to get by. However, working two jobs at once still didn’t make enough money to make ends meet and left her and her children living in poverty.

“All these jobs were physically and emotionally draining and the worst part was still not making enough to support you’re family,” said Foy.

Journalist, social commentator, and author, Barbara Ehrenreich, realized this disturbing condition in our country and decided to get out there and try it out for herself. Ehrenreich tried to find out if the working class could get by working a full-time job at $6-$7 an hour and still afford to pay rent and buy food. 

Ehrenreich tried this experiment with different jobs in three different states for one month each, taking jobs such as a waitress, housekeeping, nursing home maid, and Wal-Mart employee. These jobs were tiresome and grew even more exhausting when Ehrenreich realized she was not going to make the month’s rent and had to get two jobs to cover her costs. After she completed her assignment, she wrote her book, “Nickel and Dimed, (on not getting by in America),” in which she describes her experiences.

“Looking back on the assignment, I was glad I did it, but the lesson I learned is that all these jobs are mentally challenging,” Ehrenreich said.

However, Ehrenreich’s experiment was in some ways unrealistic since she already had a car to get her from job to job, while the working poor can not even afford rent, let alone a vehicle.  Also, Ehrenreich had the advantage of not having small children, and only being in the situation temporarily.  But, the experience did provide an eye opener to those people who may not be aware of the working poor. 

“Never will I used the word unskilled to describe these workers because every job requires skill,” said Ehrenreich.

Foy has been struggling economically most of her life and Ehrenreich’s book made her glad that someone finally said something because the rest of the world is oblivious to the situation.

“I was very relieved when I read her book because finally someone from a very comfortable background has noticed how hard it is down here at the other end,” said Foy.

Since Foy returned to the Quad Cities in 1999, things have began to turn around for her and she no longer finds herself in the devastating situation she once had experienced.

Through the help of AmeriCorps Vista, an organization that helps bring individuals and communities out of poverty, Foy was able to go to college and purse her career as a freelance writer and photographer.

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