Crime, poverty, and welfare are unfortunate correlations that exist in our current system
of public welfare, which has created a system of dependence and generational
bondage. Some argue that welfare entitlements are essential to combat poverty and
claim that poverty is criminalized by the system. “Debates about welfare in the U.S.
often degenerate into a fiscal tug of war in which the left simply seeks to expand
conventional welfare spending while the right seeks to shrink it” (Rector & Menon,
2018). To delve into this problem, we must first look at the history of the US welfare
system and why it was created.
History of the US Welfare System
According to Lumen Learning, a welfare state is a “concept of government in which the
state plays a key role in the protection and promotion of the economic and social well-
being of its citizens. It is based on the principles of equality of opportunity, equitable
distribution of wealth, and public responsibility for those unable to avail themselves of
the minimal provisions for a good life” (Lumen Learning, n.d.). The United States
government officially began the welfare system under the guidance of Franklin D.
Roosevelt (FDR). In the 1930s during the Great Depression, FDR pushed out the New
Deal, which was a set of policies, agencies, and programs designed to combat
economic depression and unemployment (Grigsby, 2021). In 1935, FDR signed the
Social Security Act that officially established a national welfare system that provided
assistance to needy and dependent children under age 16, to destitute old people, the
needy blind, and crippled children. A program that was meant for good and for as a
short-term program has grown in scope and coverage. In the 1960s President Lyndon
B. Johnson added even more programs including Food Stamps, Medicaid (state-
administered health insurance), and Medicare (old-age health insurance) through the
Great Society initiative. Along the way the North Carolina General Assembly enacted its
own departments and programs, which today fall under the Division of Social Services,
which is a branch of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
(Norris, 2006). Today, we have many government programs, entitlements, and full
agencies that provide a wide range of benefits.
NC Statistics
Poverty is a problem in the United States, and according to Welfare Info, North Carolina
ranks nationally 8th in Poverty Rate at 16.1%, with the Poverty Rate of North Carolina
being moderately higher than the national average of 14.6% (2019). As far as
expenditures on social services, the NCDHHS Social Services budget for 2022-2023 is
$3,847,615,006, with 83.84% federal funding, 4.10% state funding, and 12.07% county
funding. Union County has a total budget for social services of $51,847,628, with
83.31% federal funding, 3.13% state funding, and 13.52% county funding. Social
Service programs are a major part of current government functions and budgets, as can
be seen from these numbers.
Crime, Poverty, and Welfare
Effects of children living in poverty include “poor health, inadequate healthcare,
economic hardships, negative educational outcomes, personal challenges, negative
mental states and behaviors, and risky behaviors, employment difficulties, and long-
term poverty” (Training Matters, 2007). These factors often compound each other and
lead to a vicious cycle. When specifically looking at crime, all people who live in poverty
do not commit crimes, however, many of the factors that place people in poverty are
because of crimes. The homeless population is an example of people in poverty who
commit crimes such as stealing and trespassing. People who have served time in jail
are often in poverty because of the time they spent in jail and the behaviors that put
them there in the first place. These factors are correlations, and while one may
contribute to the other, the cause of the crime problem is not inherently poverty, it is a
lack of knowledge and personal responsibility. The learned behavior is dependence on
the government, with the implied lesson that you are owed and entitled to that which is
not yours.
In an article, the ACLU NC claimed that “We must end policies and practices that
criminalize poverty. Criminal codes are full of offenses that punish or punish more
severely because a person is financially insecure” (ACLU NC, 2021). Examples of
crimes that they thought should not be criminal were someone who was hungry
“stealing a burrito from a 7-Eleven” or someone who was cold stealing “a pair of warm
gloves from Macy’s” with their endgame being that “lawmakers should begin dismantling
and repealing the many laws that needlessly ensnare Americans in the criminal legal
system and ensure they remain below the poverty line. Poverty isn’t a moral failing, and
it shouldn’t be a crime” (ACLU NC, 2021). I disagree with the notion of making actions
that are clearly criminal legal, but feel that the root of the problem should be where the
solution is. Both throwing more money at people and taking away consequences of
one's actions are attempts to fix the symptoms, but not the cause.
Welfare Reform as a Means to Alleviate Poverty
The system negatively impacts people in the long game. The welfare system as it is
today has grown and has been misused and abused. The negative long-term effects on
family and personal wellbeing many times are a heavy price to pay for the assistance
received. These policies are counterproductive and create generational dependence,
yet the government continually expands coverages and benefits. “The current welfare
system undermines self-sufficiency and pushes individuals toward the margins of
society. It undermines work and attacks marriage, and by so doing, it strikes at the roots
of human happiness and well-being. Therefore, the principal goal of welfare reform
should not be merely to cut spending. Instead, the goals and content of welfare
programs must be transformed so that they truly benefit the poor” (Rector & Menon,
2018).
Welfare reform should merge compassion with fairness by requiring all able-bodied
adult recipients to work or prepare for work as a condition of receiving aid, be limited in
scope, be limited in the time frame, require illegal drug testing, and redirect more of the
program funding to preventative measures such as education and family strengthening
programs. Rector & Menon labeled the underlying issues that lead to poverty as
“behavioral poverty” that is characterized by eight elements: “Lack of marriage, unstable
sexual relationships, sequential cohabitation, and high levels of single parenthood;
Persistent unemployment, underemployment, or detachment from the labor force
influenced by impaired work attitudes; Low levels of basic verbal and math skills, low
academic achievement; and failure to complete high school; Drug and alcohol abuse
and dependence; Criminal activity; Traditional welfare dependence; Traditional welfare
dependence; Limiting and harmful home environments and the transmission of self-
limiting norms and behaviors to children within the home; and Negative community
effects: low levels of social capital, high levels of social isolation and anomie, harmful
peer relationships, and lack of attachment to value-generating institutions such as
churches” (2018). The eight underlying factors of poverty are what need to be
addressed through government social services, instead of the current trend of throwing
money at the problem.
Reference
ACLU NC. (2021, March 16). How the stimulus can help decimalize poverty.
https://www.acluofnorthcarolina.org/en/news/how-stimulus-can-help-decriminalize-
poverty
Grigsby. (2021). A very brief history of welfare in the US. Soc 315 Social Welfare.
https://people.eou.edu/socwelf/readings/week-2/welfare-history
Lumen Learning. (n.d.). The Welfare State.
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-politicalscience/chapter/the-welfare-state/
NCDHHS. (2022). Budget estimates state totals.
https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/social-services/county-staff-information/budget-
information/dss-budget-estimates
NCDHHS. (2022). County budget estimates 2022-2023.
https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/social-services/county-staff-information/budget-
information/budget-estimates/county-budget-estimates-2022-2023
Rector, R. & Menon, V. (2018). Understanding the hidden $1.1 trillion welfare system
and how to reform it. The Heritage Foundation.
https://www.heritage.org/welfare/report/understanding-the-hidden-11-trillion-welfare-
system-and-how-reform-it
Training Matters. (2007, June). Child welfare practice and child poverty in rural NC.
Training Matters v. 8 n. 3. chrome-
extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=https%3A%2F
%2Ftrainingmatters-nc.org%2Ftm_v8n3%2FTMv8n3final.pdf&clen=110342&chunk=true
Welfare Info. (2019). Poverty in North Carolina. https://www.welfareinfo.org/poverty-
rate/north-carolina/
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