World poverty is a devastating issue that is well known in the world today. However, while Americans are constantly told about poverty through TV commercials and fundraisers created by charity organizations, many don’t really think or do anything about it. In reality, world poverty is something that every person should be concerned about.

Every day, 22,000 children die due to poverty, according to reports from Globalissues.org on world poverty statistics from UNICEF, a United Nations organization set up to improve the health and education of children and woman. This statistic becomes even more alarming when it is factored in that out of the 2.2 billion children in the world, 1 billion, or almost half of the world’s children, live in poverty. When the math is done, 8.03 million children will die every year due to poverty, and 1.4 million of those deaths will be from the lack of safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.

Numbers like these are heartbreaking to read, and to many it seems that world poverty has engraved itself too deep, and nothing can be done to fix it. However, reports on Visionofearth.org states that extreme world poverty could be ended in 20 years with the cost of $175 billion a year.

With the United States in about $16 trillion of debt, as according to Usdebtclock.org, it seems that an annual $175 billion is too much for Americans. Some may say that the country doesn’t have enough money, so world poverty just isn’t something Americans should worry about. An organization named Advent Conspiracy has made it its mission to tackle world poverty by asking people to donate money as an alternative to buying expensive Christmas presents. Advent Conspiracy states in a video on its website, Adventconspiracy.org, that America alone spends $450 billion on the holidays every year. This would mean that if Americans spent 38 percent less than they usually do on Christmas presents and donated that money instead, the end of extreme world poverty could come within those 20 years. Just imagine what could be accomplished if Americans decided to give away some of their holiday shopping money every year to help end world poverty.

All this information raises the questions: Why should Americans be worried about the impoverished people in other countries? Although America is a well-established country, it is in great debt, so is world poverty this country’s problem? My answer is yes.

Although I believe it is not the responsibility of the American government to end world poverty, and that they should focus on fixing and rebuilding the American economy, I believe Americans, as individuals and as human beings, should be concerned and help end this worldwide issue. Humans need to care for each other, no matter the ethical, social, economic, or geographical boundaries.

Of course, solving extreme world poverty is not solely the job of Americans. It is the responsibility of the entire world, and America is part of that world. It is clear that while Americans know about poverty, many do not think about it. If they really did, it is doubtful that they would spend $450 billion on holiday presents. Yes, the world should join together, but American citizens cannot control what other countries do. What we can do is think more selflessly and give as much as we can, which means a lot more than we think.