Blame Welfare, Ignore Poverty and Inequality

by Joel F. Handler , Yeheskel Hasenfeld

• ISBN13: 9780521870351
• ISBN10: 0521870356
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-11-27
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

With the passage of the 1996 welfare reform, not only welfare, but poverty and inequality have disappeared from the political discourse. The decline in the welfare rolls has been hailed as a success. This book challenges that assumption. It argues that while many single mothers left welfare, they have joined the working poor, and fail to make a decent living. The book examines the persistent demonization of poor single-mother families; the impact of the low-wage market on perpetuating poverty and inequality; and the role of the welfare bureaucracy in defining deserving and undeserving poor. It argues that the emphasis on family values - marriage promotion, sex education and abstinence - is misguided and diverts attention from the economic hardships low-income families face. The book proposes an alternative approach to reducing poverty and inequality that centers on a children's allowance as basic income support coupled with jobs and universal child care.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
List of Acronyms	xi
1 Introduction	1	(16)
The Argument	5	(2)
The Plan of the Book	7	(10)
2 The State of Poverty: TANF Recipients	17	(53)
The Myth and Reality of Poverty in America	17	(2)
Measuring Poverty	19	(4)
Experiencing Poverty	23	(2)
The Risk of Poverty and Poverty Spells	25	(5)
Who Are the Poor?	30	(17)
The Working Poor	30	(3)
Poverty, Race, and Ethnicity	33	(6)
Poverty, Gender, and Single Parenthood	39	(3)
Child Poverty	42	(5)
Why Is Poverty Persistently High?	47	(6)
Welfare Recipients	53	(14)
Historical Trends	53	(2)
Welfare Use	55	(2)
Characteristics of Families	57	(1)
Race/Ethnicity	58	(1)
Education Level	59	(1)
Welfare and Work	59	(2)
Monthly Income	61	(1)
Employment	62	(1)
Welfare Leavers: Stuck in Poverty	63	(4)
Conclusions	67	(3)
3 The Response to Poverty and Inequality: The Welfare State	70	(80)
Introduction	70	(4)
The Public Welfare State	74	(2)
Cash Assistance	76	(5)
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)	81	(8)
In-Kind Programs	89	(12)
Food and Nutrition	89	(9)
Hunger and Food Insecurity	98	(3)
Child Care	101	(3)
Child Support	104	(2)
Education	106	(7)
Housing	113	(3)
Health Care	116	(12)
Trying to Reform Health Insurance	119	(3)
Health Insurance for Low-Income Children (SCHIP)	122	(6)
Health of Children of Immigrants	128	(1)
Summary: Child Well-Being	128	(5)
Who Uses the Welfare State?	133	(3)
The Impact of the Welfare State on Poverty	136	(4)
The Private Welfare State: Workers	140	(4)
The "Third Sector"	144	(3)
Conclusions	147	(3)
4 Demonizing the Single-Mother Family: The Path to Welfare Reform	150	(36)
The Colonial Period	151	(4)
The Origins of Aid to Dependent Children	155	(2)
The "Suitable Home"	157	(1)
The "Welfare Queen" and the Welfare "Crisis"	158	(4)
The Attacks on Welfare	162	(4)
The Liberal Response to Welfare: The War on Poverty	166	(8)
The Triumph of the "Welfare Queen"	174	(4)
The Transformation of Welfare Departments	178	(1)
Putting Recipients to Work	179	(2)
State Waivers to Increase Work Requirements	181	(1)
"Ending Welfare as We Know It"	182	(2)
Conclusions: A Return to Colonial Welfare	184	(2)
5 The Welfare Bureaucracy	186	(52)
Welfare Bureaucracy as an Enactment of Moral Symbols	190	(1)
The "New" Welfare-to-Work Ideology	191	(4)
The Welfare Department as an Employment Agency	195	(2)
The "Welfare-to-Work" Approach	197	(2)
Use of Sanctions	199	(4)
Routinization and Discretion	203	(3)
Provision of Social Services	206	(2)
State Variations: Do They Matter?	208	(8)
Integrated vs. Specialized Case Management	216	(3)
Privatization of TANF: Who Benefits?	219	(14)
Changing the Culture of the Welfare Department	233	(2)
Conclusions	235	(3)
6 Work and the Low-Wage Labor Market: Mothers and Children	238	(44)
What Kinds of Jobs Are Available? The Low-Wage Labor Market for Women	239	(7)
The Rise of Nonstandard Work	246	(5)
Stuck in Low-Wage Jobs	251	(2)
The Workforce Investment Act (WIA)	253	(1)
The Impact on Welfare Leavers	254	(2)
The Dilemmas of Child Care for Low-Wage Workers	256	(1)
The Use of Child Care	257	(1)
The Costs of Child Care	258	(2)
Availability of Child Care Resources	260	(4)
Caring for Children with Health Problems	264	(2)
"It's Just Not Working"	266	(7)
The Quality of Child Care	273	(2)
The Effects of Child Care	275	(3)
Impact of Working in the Low-Wage Market on Child Development	278	(2)
Conclusions	280	(2)
7 Welfare Reform and Moral Entrepreneurship: Promoting Marriage and Responsible Parenthood and Preventing Teenage Pregnancy	282	(34)
Marriage and Poverty	286	(3)
Married and Poor	289	(1)
The Fragile Families Study	290	(5)
Paternity Establishment and Child-Support Enforcement	295	(3)
Promoting Healthy Marriages	298	(3)
Family Cap	301	(2)
Domestic Violence	303	(2)
PRWORA and Teens	305	(1)
Teen Single Mothers, Fathers, and Their Children	306	(1)
Teen Mothers on Welfare	307	(3)
Living Arrangements	308	(1)
School Attendance	308	(1)
Sanctions	309	(1)
Teen Children of Welfare Recipients	310	(1)
Does PRWORA Affect Rates of Teen Pregnancy, School Dropout, and Independent Living Arrangements?	310	(1)
Can Abstinence-Only-until-Marriage Programs Reduce Teen Pregnancies?	311	(3)
Conclusions	314	(2)
8 Addressing Poverty and Inequality	316	(33)
The Starting Point	316	(3)
The Interconnectedness of Poverty Issues	319	(4)
Why There Has to Be Both Jobs and Income Support	323	(2)
Improving the Paid Labor Market	325	(11)
Increasing the Income of Families: A Children's Allowance	336	(2)
Improving Child Care	338	(1)
Child Care: The Very Early Period	338	(1)
Children: Preschool	339	(3)
Improving the Neighborhood Effect	342	(1)
The Hard-to-Employ	343	(6)
References	349	(30)
Author Index	379	(3)
Subject Index	382