questions in(sociology of poverty)
Perspectives of poverty
Question 6 from from Lectures and Williams
1
Question 6
Critically discuss the 1996 Welfare Reform showing among other things that it was not “race neutral,” and the failure of the Congressional Black Caucus, Left Organizations, women and Latino Civil Rights Organizations to oppose it. Also discuss the effects of Welfare Reform on women and people of color, recommendations to improve the conditions for women and people of color, etc.
Economic Decline
Welfare system was made when industrial business increased because they need labor
Will need workers so help them when they are out of work
Did not do it out of moral obligation, did what is needed to run a business
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity and Reconciliation Act in 1996 Clinton signed the order
Computers and robotics are replacing labor and businesses are downsizing
Capitalist no longer needed big government or welfare state
1992: wanted to end welfare as we know it
Welfare was made in the period of economic expansion- Reform was needed for the welfare state
Proposed Plan
Republican proposed a plan
Ending entitlement status (do not have welfare for life)- 5 year limit and state flexibility to shorten
Not guaranteed to all poor children and parents unless they make criteria
Does not address to whether there will be recession modifications
Take more than 40 welfare programs into 3 block grants
Cash welfare, child welfare and food/nutrition program
Block payment to states and then disbursed
Recipients can’t jump states that pay larger, you get what you get in your home state
Limit mothers under 18 years old or family that have more kids after they get welfare (cap welfare)
Welfare of Legal immigrants can lose SSI
Mandatory work tied up in it-state is forcing individual to get funds
Welfare State
Low skilled worker market shrinking and low wage market
Mandatory work tied up in- state is forcing individual to get funds
The state is financing the business sector- you have to work to get aid
The state could not make their own anti-poverty programs- there are federal mandates if you have federal money
Criteria were tightened for disabled children and legal immigrants were denied welfare
The more people you get off the welfare system the less the government has to pay
It would reduce assistance of more than 5 million children and mothers
Extreme poverty will grow
Welfare cuts- $54.5B
$24B cut on food stamps
$7B SSI cuts
$3B Child nutrition cuts
$2.5B Social services cuts
Effects on Women
Major conclusion that they system was set up so that no woman has guarantee of entitlement
Parents and mothers with children were forced to work
Many are uneducated, without childcare, unskilled
Parents had to participate in any other state approved education
If fathers could not be identified they can cut welfare: “good clause exclusion”
Cap of how many children you can have
Women become to brunt of welfare attack
No sense of entitlement
Poor woman must work but middle class woman could stay home and get rid of their jobs
Jobs for women were below min wage
Once the single mother is taken out the home, it occurs more expenses
Effects on Women
Transportation and child care
Learning Theory: once you learn something you carry it on into your adult life
Men were socialized as the bread winners and it is now the woman’s personal responsibility to take care of women
All women that work at home is unpaid labor
Set out to get single mothers
Had to get GED
Under 18 had to live with a guardian
Without established father then welfare could increase
Without childcare, children were left alone (latch key children)
More Welfare Restrictions
Majority benefits were in the south- could not move to another state to get higher income
time limits
did not have enough time to get acclimated. i.e ESL, drug addiction (need to do rehab)
Blacks and Latinos
Live in state with less benefits
Harder to find and keep jobs because of lack of education
Failure to Protest
National Organization of Women (NOW)
Did not fight for the welfare system because they “cannot see how this problem affecting their constituency”
Women in Congress refused to speak about welfare reform
CBC-did not fight against the reform
Was not an active coalition to come up with an alternative deal
Did not stage a walk out or distribution within congress
Had one press conference to speak about how it would affect children
NAACP, urban league, Latino organization-limited visibility in the welfare debate
Increasing significance of class- class trumps race
Personal agendas got into the way- “friend of Bill”
Lobbying for the welfare system was not a priority for women and Latino orgs
Did not use their expertise in media or influence because they did not want to upset the Clinton administration
Black Leaders and Elites
Black leaders think they do not need to masses
Did not stand up to fight for the poor
Failure of black political elite to connect with the poor
Negative views of poor
Black elite focus on what Black poor have not done and their behavioral problems
Did not focus on structural and institutional racism
Did not take on the position of leaders