Why America Lost the War on Poverty—and How to Win it
Frank Stricker
Abstract
This assessment of poverty and policy in the United States from 1950 to the present examines an era that has seen serious discussion about the causes of poverty and unemployment. Analyzing the War on Poverty, theories of the culture of poverty and the underclass, the effects of Reaganomics, and the 1996 welfare reform, it demonstrates that most antipoverty approaches are futile without the presence (or creation) of good jobs. The book notes that since the 1970s, U.S. poverty levels have remained at or above 11 percent, despite training programs and periods of economic growth. The creation of j ... More
This assessment of poverty and policy in the United States from 1950 to the present examines an era that has seen serious discussion about the causes of poverty and unemployment. Analyzing the War on Poverty, theories of the culture of poverty and the underclass, the effects of Reaganomics, and the 1996 welfare reform, it demonstrates that most antipoverty approaches are futile without the presence (or creation) of good jobs. The book notes that since the 1970s, U.S. poverty levels have remained at or above 11 percent, despite training programs and periods of economic growth. The creation of jobs has continued to lag behind the need for them. The book argues that a serious public debate is needed about the job situation; social programs must be redesigned, a national health care program must be developed, and economic inequality must be addressed. It urges all sides to be honest—if we don't want to eliminate poverty, then we should say so. But if we do want to reduce poverty significantly, we must expand decent jobs and government income programs, redirecting national resources away from the rich and toward those with low incomes.
Keywords:
poverty,
Reaganomics,
jobs,
unemployment,
underclass,
welfare reform,
economic inequality,
social programs,
training programs,
United States
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2007 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780807831113 |
| Published to North Carolina Scholarship Online: September 2014 |
DOI:10.5149/9780807882290_stricker |
