The literacy rate in most rural counties is pretty shocking in the United States. For a number of reasons, reading simply isn’t considered a necessary skill in order to survive. That may be partially true from the perspective of a farmer or day laborer, but that perspective is really out of touch with the contemporary world. Even farming has gone high tech, and the competitive farm owner isn’t as uneducated as his predecessors. As more immigrants settle in rural areas that offer low paying, low education jobs, the problem is compounded. Everyone deserves a chance at a better place in life, so adult literacy programs are needed in rural areas.
Often times, illiterate is associated with being unable to speak the English language. Even if English is a person’s second language, and he only needs to learn how to read and write in this new tongue, he still needs a place to learn. However, the immigrant is nothing more than a red heron. There are plenty of rural natural born citizens who cannot read. Their economic status cannot grow because of it.
Whether it’s a lack of resources or volunteers to man the programs, most people who do want to improve their literacy skills would have to go to a nearby city to do so. If your economic standing is low, you probably don’t have the free time or the money to make that drive. If the programs do exist, there may not be enough public awareness around them to send those who want to learn to read that way. If the programs are unaffordable in some towns, activists should, at least, help promote the nearest adult literacy program so that those who want to access the service will know that it exists.