Kristin Seefeldt spoke with The New York Times and National Public Radio's On Point about her research following the debt burdens of single mothers in Detroit.
The New York Times interviewed Seefeldt for the article "Life in the Red," which looks at the dangers of debt and the challenges of cash flow management for low-income families.
"You're keeping the lights on, you're not being evicted, the kids are not hungry, the family is protected," Seefeldt told the New York Times. "It allows you to say, 'I'm doing what I'm doing, and I'm not out on the street.' "
Seefeldt also spoke with National Public Radio's On Point in a radio segment focused on increasing debt burden in America. In the interview she countered the notion that all people who suffer under a heavy debt burden are financially irresponsible.
"At least for the folks that I work with, I think they're some of the most financially savvy people I have ever met," Seefeldt said. "At the end of the month, what's coming in does not cover just the basics. We're not talking about frivolous spending; we're talking about the monthly electricity bill, the rent, a car payment that's needed to keep a job."
[Read the New York Times article]
[Listen to the NPR story]