The Politics of Poverty Exposed in There Are No Children HereAt a young age Lajoe, his parents and other siblings were the first family to move into the Henry Horner Newly Built Homes, a public housing high-rise project, on Chicago's South Side. Lajoe remembers how clean and spacious their apartment was back then. As the years went by the city became less and less able to allocate funds to keep up with the necessary repairs to the buildings and the city didn't seem to care. Projects have become run down, damp and condensed to support a large family. Lajoe became pregnant at the young age of fourteen and was unable to finish her high school education. She eventually married Paul Rivers, the father of her son, and had six more children. Lajoe's husband, Paul, distanced himself from them more often than not and rarely offered support to their children. This story focuses on the lives of the two middle children, Lafayette and Pharaoh, in the family. The older of the two boys, Lafayette, takes on the role of co-parent and support system for his mother while worrying about his younger siblings. ' well-being, who their friends are and whether they can successfully dodge bullets in the corridor. He has four younger brothers, a brother a few years younger than him and a string of triples. He kept a particular eye on his brother Pharaoh who was weaker and easily intimidated. At some point in the story Lajoe realized that, due to her husband's absence and lack of close adult relationships, she had placed an enormous responsibility on Lafayette's shoulders. Lajoe said: “The things I should say to Paul I was talking to Lafie, I put him in a bad situation. But I had no one to talk to. Lafie, that day became a twelve year old.”(101) Lafayette had lost his childhood somewhere in the projects. He lived in constant fear for his life and the lives of those he cared about. He tried to stay out of trouble and avoid dealing with gangs. But when it came to the projects it was hard to stay out of trouble. There were many occasions when police falsely accused Lafayette and his older brother, Terrence. As Lafayette grew, he found it increasingly difficult to avoid the older kids and not get caught up in the fast-moving crowds.