ZYNA Resource Guide #4

Poverty and financial insecurity often creates untenable conditions where women and/or children must make the decision to stay in an abusive situation so as to not face homelessness and worse. Recent popular
media such as the Netflix tv series “Maid” highlight the systemic difficulties those in poverty can face in their struggle to rise out of it. Poverty creates food insecurity, in which the cheapest and most easily accessible food is almost entirely unhealthy, leading to a growing obesity rate. As the coronavirus spread throughout the globe in the past 2 years, with hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations in the US alone, the country has seen that for many a single bout of illness with medical bills and the inability to work can land entire families into poverty. Those who face severe poverty, especially in adolescence, often struggle to recover from its profound impact on mental health even after their financial situation eases considerably. Mental illnesses such as depression that may be easier to treat with therapy and regular medication can be debilitating when one has the money for neither and added financial pressure. ZYNA has compiled the following resources to spur discussion and action within the Zoroastrian community to support impoverished individuals in North America.

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