Debt is the worst poverty.

The aphorism argues that debt can be more debilitating than simple lack of money. Poverty may be a condition of scarcity, but debt adds obligation, anxiety, and vulnerability to others’ power—turning need into a form of captivity. Fuller’s phrasing also implies a moral dimension: debt threatens independence and can corrode dignity, since the debtor’s choices are constrained by repayment and by the creditor’s claims. The statement’s enduring appeal lies in its compression of a social truth: financial hardship is often experienced most painfully when it is coupled with liability, interest, and the fear of default, rather than mere low income.