October 29, 2011
Ms. Jaeger
According to Mike Davis author of planet of slums, nearly 80% of Nigeria’s
urban population or some 41.6 million people, live in a slum. A slum is a place where
people go to save money when they don’t have money or have very little money. It is a
very crowed place to live in. Slums can be very bad for people. Slums have a negative
impact on humans because those who live in slums must drink dirty water, are also prone
to disease, and live near to or in a sewage. Although slums help people to save money
they also have to take a risk in drinking dirty water.
People who live in slums don’t drink clean water. They have to drink dirty water.
Even in the article says “by United Nation’s definition, their residents are missing at least
Some of the durable walls, a secure lease or title, adeauate living space, and access to
safe drinking water and toilets.” It means that if you live in a slum you will be lacking
some of that stuff. If you are lacking good water to drink then that’s not a good place for
you to be living in. If you have a family and you are living in a slum your kids are going
to be missing good water and that could kill them. If people drink the dirty water they
will die. If lots of people start to die then that could start to effect the place population.
The population will lower and could effect the country. People in slums just don’t have
to drink dirty water they also are easily prone to disease.
People who are living in a slum could easily be prone to diseases. In the article it
says “ they used to make do by into a near by outhouse that belongs to someone else. She
takes me down a muddy, slippery path to show it to me.” If people don’t have a good
place to go to the restrooms then they could get diseases. They will die because there is
no good doctors to help them. People in the slums need a good place to go to the
restroom so they wont get sick. That would save lots of people in the slums also have
to face living in a sewage or next to one.
People who live in a slum also have to face living near a sewage or next to one
everyday. They just don’t live next to sewage but also a river that carries chemicals. In
the article it says “ the foul river carries not just sewage, but also chemicals form farming
estates outside the slum.” If you live there it will smell really bad cause of the sewage and
you would also get sick because of the chemicals in the river. It is also dangerous living
next to sewage because it could flood your house when the river over flows. If that
happens it could mess up the families houses and effect everyone living in the slums.
This is why all of these examples show how a slum can have an negative impact on
humans.
Living in a slum could save you a little bit of money but it also has its down side
to it. Slums could be a good place to save money. But slums also have a negative impact
on humans because those who live in slums must drink dirty water, are prone to diseases,
and live near to or in a sewage. People should never live in the slums. They shouldn’t live
there because it is not health for them or for there family to that live in the slums. The
slums are a crowed place and a very dirty place to live. How do you think the little kids
growing up there feel like.
