Final answer:
Poverty among older African Americans may be attributed to the lack of education, limited economic opportunities, and the effects of racial inequities, factors that are intertwined with historical injustices and systemic barriers that perpetuate the cycle of poverty. The correct option is 1,3,4.
Step-by-step explanation:
According to the text provided, poverty among older African Americans can be attributed to a few different factors. Factors such as lack of education, economic opportunities, and racial inequities appear to be significant contributors to poverty among this demographic.
Education, or the lack thereof, is identified as a key to stability, and it is implied that growing up in poverty limits access to quality education, which in turn affects the ability to secure well-paying jobs.
The legacy of discrimination and the lack of economically viable jobs in many urban areas, as an extension of historical injustices such as slavery and Jim Crow laws, compound this cycle of poverty.
This situation is perpetuated through systemic barriers like persistent racism that African Americans face, as noted in policies aimed at alleviating poverty by addressing its root causes, such as increasing the minimum wage and extending unemployment compensation to assist those affected by such systemic issues.
Therefore, while the text does not single out one factor, it points towards a combination of lack of education, limited economic opportunities, and the effects of racial inequities as multiple causes of poverty among older African Americans. The correct option is 1,3,4.