Good heavens Bobert...they came here to American and certainly were not well off. They were tailors and rag collectors and bone collectors and many other things as well. They lived in putrid slums. The cycle of poverty can and has been broken. That is not to blame anyone in it...but the message that has to be given is that it can be broken. Main ingredients have been found to finish high school, stay off drugs and alcohol and don't be involved in pregnancy outside of marriage. That is the recipe. No guarantees it always works, but pretty good guarantees if you want a prescription for poverty start with the above. mg