Gap between haves and have nots in US widening

Many believe it is the changing face of the US economy. Tulsa has been devastated by job losses. Big-name firms like WorldCom, Williams Energy and CitGo have closed or moved, costing the city about 24,000 jobs. Now Wal-Mart embodies the new US job market: low wages, few benefits.

Well-paid work only goes to the university-educated. Many others who just complete high school face a bleak future.

During the 2004 election the only politician to address poverty directly was Senator John Edwards, whose campaign theme was "Two Americas."

He was derided by Republicans for doing down the country and -- after Senator John Kerry had picked him as his Democratic running mate -- the rhetoric softened in the heat of the campaign.

But, in fact, Edwards was right. While 45.8 million Americans lack any health insurance, the top 20 per cent of earners take over half the national income. At the same time the bottom 20 per cent took home just 3.4 percent.

In the US, to be poor is a stigma. In a country which celebrates individuality and the goal of giving everyone an equal opportunity to make it big, those in poverty are often blamed for their own situation. Experience on the ground does little to bear that out.

When people are working two jobs at a time and still failing to earn enough to feed their families, it seems impossible to call them lazy or selfish.

There seems to be a failure in the system, not the poor themselves.

It is an impression backed up by many of those mired in poverty in Oklahoma and Kentucky. Few asked for handouts. Many asked for decent wages.

"It is unfair. I am working all the time and so what have I done wrong?" Lee says.

But the economy does not seem to be allowing people to make a decent living. It condemns the poor to stay put, fighting against seemingly impossible odds or to pull up sticks and try somewhere else.

In Tulsa, Tammy Reinbold and her family are moving to Texas as soon as they save the money for enough gasoline. It could take several months.

"I've been in Tulsa 12 years and I just gotta try somewhere else," she says.