The email was typical of many I receive. It suggested the poor are getting away with something.

Here's a piece of it: "I read your article, 'An unflattering portrait of poverty in Troy.' I was hoping to get some insight into the situation of people living there, as every time I drive through the area during working hours I see people wandering aimlessly in the streets, expensive cars parked next to neglected houses.

"What economy supports people living there? I know they have Internet, TV, DVD players, microwaves, dishwashers, stoves. They have money to buy cigarettes, to embellish themselves with tattoos, piercings and coloring their hair.

"Then why are they called poor? What do they contribute to our society?"

Well, there's a lot to unpack in there, including some unfortunate judgments and nasty stereotypes. But I get the feeling that the writer, a woman from Selkirk, was asking the questions earnestly.

So as an attempt at finding answers, I looked up data for the North Central section of the Troy — a census tract in which 73 percent of children live below the federal poverty line and where the median household income is just $21,592.

Yes, the racially diverse neighborhood is awfully poor. That won't surprise anyone who's been there. But census data paints a complex picture of that poverty, one that defies stereotyped expectations.

For example, 45 percent of the people older than 16 in the neighborhood are employed — meaning they do more than "wander aimlessly."

It may surprise you that in a middle-class Latham neighborhood four miles to the west, the percentage isn't dramatically higher. There, 58 percent of the population is employed, earning a median household income of $74,597.

The difference, obviously, is that the Latham workers have higher-paying jobs.

Indeed, people from North Central work mostly in retail, food service and hospitality, while the Latham folks work primarily in management, business and science occupations, according to the census data, which is based on five years of surveys.

Those North Central workers tend to start work early. Twenty-three percent leave the house between midnight and 6 a.m., and most are out the door by 8 a.m.

Meanwhile, many in the Latham neighborhood sleep in. The census says just 6 percent leave by 6 a.m., while nearly half start their commute between 8 a.m. and noon.

The point isn't to pick on Latham. (I'm certainly not an early-out-the-door type.) But maybe we shouldn't be so quick to suggest that people in North Central are lazy? Just a thought.

Oh, by the way, the census says that 51 percent of North Central households don't have access to a vehicle, so I guess those "expensive cars next to neglected houses" belong to the other 49 percent. Yes, that must be it.

Let's talk about welfare. A widespread assumption is that nearly everyone in neighborhoods like North Central is living on the taxpayer dime.

According to the census, 55 percent of households in the census tract did, in fact, receive food stamps at some point in the last 12 months. But a much smaller percentage, 18 percent, received cash public assistance, and the average annual amount received was $4,615.

Is that too many people relying on welfare? Absolutely. But it's just inaccurate to suggest the entire neighborhood is on the dole — and the percentage on welfare would be significantly lower if jobs were more available in a neighborhood with few stores and fewer significant employers.

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Certainly, you can find explanations for poverty in the census data. A staggering 86 percent of households with children are headed by women, with no husband present. Meanwhile, 37 percent of the neighborhood residents older than 25 are high school dropouts.

Those factors are a recipe for poverty, and there's no denying that personal choices contribute to the economic struggles in neighborhoods like North Central.

But the poor aren't helped by a low-wage, part-time service economy that offers little room for advancement, nor are they helped by a society that believes they're getting away with something because they have a stove or splurged on a tattoo.

That brings me back to the email and the questions that launched this column.

What, the Selkirk woman asked, do the poor contribute to our society?

Often, they do the work that nobody wants to do. They flip burgers, clean nursing homes and stock the shelves of your favorite big-box store.

Of course, work and taxes aren't the only way to measure what a person contributes. It's worth noting that 7 percent of North Central residents over 18 are war veterans, according to the census.

That's enough of a contribution for me.

cchurchill@timesunion.com • 518-454-5442 • @chris_churchill