You can watch an extract from my HST Talks series via the link below. HST members can watch the talk in full!

O'Hara, M. (2021, February 26). The dominant poverty narrative: what is it, why does it matter and what can we do about it? In The Business & Management Collection, Henry Stewart Talks. Retrieved March 7, 2021, from https://hstalks.com/bm/4522/.

What does it mean to be poor in the U.S. and Britain? For decades the primary narrative about poverty in both countries is that it has been caused by personal flaws or 'bad life decisions' rather than policy choices or economic inequality. This misleading account has become deeply embedded in the public consciousness with serious ramifications for how financially vulnerable people are seen, spoken about and treated.

Drawing on a two-year multi-platform initiative, this book by award-winning journalist and author Mary O'Hara, asks how we can overturn this fundamentally pernicious portrayal once for all. Crucially, she turns to the real experts to try to find answers - the people who live it.

The Shame Game goes right to the heart of why, as cultures, we blame the poorest for their misfortune, and documents how a negative 'story' about the causes and consequences of poverty has become so embedded in the public consciousness.

Join us in the 2nd floor Art Department where Mary O'Hara will discuss her new book with comedian Maeve Higgins!

Event details here

BOOK HERE – £10 (PLUS BOOKING)

What does it mean to be poor in Britain and America? For decades the primary narrative about poverty in these wealthy nations is that it is caused by personal flaws or bad life decisions rather than policy choices or economic inequality. Trying to answer this question (and many others) are award-winning journalist Mary O Hara, and artist Ellie Harrison. Mary’s book The Shame Game, asks how we can overturn this fundamentally pernicious portrayal once and for all and Ellie’s year-long experiment living a low-carbon life in a post-industrial, and staggeringly unequal Glasgow is documented in The Glasgow Effect: A Tale of Class, Capitalism and Carbon Footprint.

Event details and tickets here

BOOK HERE – FREE

Award winning journalist, Mary O'Hara will be joined by University of Kent academics and others to discuss poverty stigma

About this Event

Despite the historically high levels of inequalities in our society, we stigmatise those in poverty whilst celebrating the ultra-rich. Such beliefs and ideas shaped a range of results including the most recent election results in the UK and US.

The welfare state research cluster invites everyone to discuss issues around poverty stigma, why it exists and talk about what we can do about this.

We welcome award-winning journalist and author Mary O’Hara, to discuss her new book The Shame Game, where she draws on a two-year multi-platform initiative to ask how we can overturn this fundamentally pernicious portrayal of poverty once and for all.

Event details and tickets here

Event details to be confirmed shortly.

BOOK HERE – £3.83 / £14.59 (inc copy of book)

Award winning journalist, Mary O'Hara, challenges the narrative that poverty is made by individuals who make "bad choices".

About this Event

Award-winning journalist and writer of Austerity Bites, Mary O'Hara, looks at the pernicious narrative demonising people in poverty. Historically, "bad decisions" and personal flaws have been used to blame people living in poverty for their own circumstances, rather than economic inequality or policy decisions. This has invaded the public consciousness and influenced people across the country in their ideas and dealing with the most vulnerable people in our society.

Drawing on a two-year multi-platform initiative, this book by award-winning journalist and author Mary O’Hara, asks how we can overturn this fundamentally pernicious portrayal once and for all. Crucially, she turns to the real experts to try to find answers – the people who live it.

Mary will be interviewed by filmmaker and activist Paul Sng.

Event details here

BOOK HERE – FREE

Book launch of the Shame Game.

What does it mean to be poor in Britain and America? For decades the primary narrative about poverty in both countries is that it has been caused by personal flaws or ‘bad life decisions’ rather than policy choices or economic inequality. This misleading account has become deeply embedded in the public consciousness with serious ramifications for how financially vulnerable people are seen, spoken about and treated.

Award-winning author and journalist Mary O’Hara is the co-founder of Project Twist-It – a two-year multi-platform initiative focusing on the power of storytelling to flip the script on poverty in the UK and US.

In a special event at the RSA, to launch her new book The Shame Game, Mary is joined in conversation by writers Mahsuda Snaith and Natasha Carthew to ask: how we can overturn this divisive and pernicious portrayal once and for all?

Event details here