Batong buhay: critical life stories of families depending on stone quarrying in Tibagan, Cay Pombo, Santa Maria, Bulacan

Abstract

The Philippines' deep-seated structural problems are major causative factors of the prevalent and worsening chronic poverty experienced by the vulnerable populations of the society. The disadvantaged condition of the stone quarry workers' families is a reflection of the multidimensional poverty many Filipinos face. Multidimensional poverty can be attributed to rampant landlessness and joblessness, widespread inaccessibility of the basic social services, namely education and health services, and the absence of human security, which exacerbate the abject situation of the poor rural communities, particularly the small-scale stone quarry communities. As a result of these deprivations, people living in poverty are rendered marginalized and socially excluded in the society. This research study critically examines the socio-economic background and the serious issues of social insecurity encountered by five poor families who depend on adobe stone quarrying. This study relies on information collected through interviews, ethnographies, life stories, journals, government documents, books, and institutional reports to critically understand the actual situation of these rural poor.