Título en español.

Abstract

The purpose of this essay is the analysis of the problems of poverty and social inequality in the context of today‘s world. The essay has three parts. In the first part the problem of poverty in the international context is analyzed placing emphasis in the factors that contribute to the maintenance of social inequality. Poverty is also analyzed from the perspective of its psychosocial effects. In the second part, the problem of poverty and Puerto Rican society is addressed. An analysis is carried out of the interrelationship between poverty and the economic, social and political factors that help to maintain it. The final part of the essay contains a summary of the Special Communities Project and its effort to improve the living conditions of the poverty stricken population living in them.