Poverty in Urban America: Policy Options

ABSTRACT:

Under the Johnson administration, the US government declared war on poverty but millions of Americans remain in poverty today. Structural shifts in the economy have pushed many groups traditionally at the margins of society (minorities and women) deeper into poverty. This paper explores demographic changes in the nature of poverty and recent government efforts to cope with them. The authors examine reasons for the persistence of poverty and describe policies with demonstrated success in reducing poverty. They contend that recent urban policies have been limited in scope and effort. What is needed, they write, is a focused, comprehensive effort that addresses the changes now occurring in cities. In particular, they offer new initiatives in family policy and community development as policy options for the next administration.

Welfare is the slate on which our most trenchant social anxieties are written. (Kornbluh, 1991, p. 24).