I have never met anyone who was happy about being poor. I've spent time in "the ghetto" and have never heard anyone even remotely express that sentiment.
The real winners in society are those who, well, win. They compete and win. They succeed at their work, in their family life and intellectually. Naturally, it follows that the losers are those who lose. They either compete (or don't compete) and don't win.
I'm making the case for the anti-status, be satisfied-with-less lifestyle. Young people are encouraged to desire things beyond their financial reach; to pull it off, they commit to two-wage-earner lifestyles that make it hard to raise a family.
I have done it the "poor" way -- foregoing expensive addresses, nice cars, fancy stereos and all kinds of "stuff" -- just to be able to raise a family. In my young adult children, I see the pressures they face to conform to the consumptive lifestyle.
And yes, I may have lived in the "ghetto" as long as you. By choice.