Policies to Address Poverty in America

Policies to Address Poverty in America PDF Author: Melissa Kearney
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 0815726473
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description
One-in-seven adults and one-in-five children in the United States live in poverty. Individuals and families living in povertyÊnot only lack basic, material necessities, but they are also disproportionally afflicted by many social and economic challenges. Some of these challenges include the increased possibility of an unstable home situation, inadequate education opportunities at all levels, and a high chance of crime and victimization. Given this growing social, economic, and political concern, The Hamilton Project at Brookings asked academic experts to develop policy proposals confronting the various challenges of AmericaÕs poorest citizens, and to introduce innovative approaches to addressing poverty.ÊWhen combined, the scope and impact of these proposals has the potential to vastly improve the lives of the poor. The resulting 14 policy memos are included in The Hamilton ProjectÕs Policies to Address Poverty in America. The main areas of focus include promoting early childhood development, supporting disadvantaged youth, building worker skills, and improving safety net and work support.

Policies to Address Poverty in America

Policies to Address Poverty in America PDF Author: Melissa Kearney
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 0815726473
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 350

Get Book

Book Description
One-in-seven adults and one-in-five children in the United States live in poverty. Individuals and families living in povertyÊnot only lack basic, material necessities, but they are also disproportionally afflicted by many social and economic challenges. Some of these challenges include the increased possibility of an unstable home situation, inadequate education opportunities at all levels, and a high chance of crime and victimization. Given this growing social, economic, and political concern, The Hamilton Project at Brookings asked academic experts to develop policy proposals confronting the various challenges of AmericaÕs poorest citizens, and to introduce innovative approaches to addressing poverty.ÊWhen combined, the scope and impact of these proposals has the potential to vastly improve the lives of the poor. The resulting 14 policy memos are included in The Hamilton ProjectÕs Policies to Address Poverty in America. The main areas of focus include promoting early childhood development, supporting disadvantaged youth, building worker skills, and improving safety net and work support.

A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty

A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty PDF Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309483980
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 619

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Book Description
The strengths and abilities children develop from infancy through adolescence are crucial for their physical, emotional, and cognitive growth, which in turn help them to achieve success in school and to become responsible, economically self-sufficient, and healthy adults. Capable, responsible, and healthy adults are clearly the foundation of a well-functioning and prosperous society, yet America's future is not as secure as it could be because millions of American children live in families with incomes below the poverty line. A wealth of evidence suggests that a lack of adequate economic resources for families with children compromises these children's ability to grow and achieve adult success, hurting them and the broader society. A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty reviews the research on linkages between child poverty and child well-being, and analyzes the poverty-reducing effects of major assistance programs directed at children and families. This report also provides policy and program recommendations for reducing the number of children living in poverty in the United States by half within 10 years.

Changing Poverty, Changing Policies

Changing Poverty, Changing Policies PDF Author: Maria Cancian
Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation
ISBN: 1610445988
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 441

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Book Description
Poverty declined significantly in the decade after Lyndon Johnson's 1964 declaration of "War on Poverty." Dramatically increased federal funding for education and training programs, social security benefits, other income support programs, and a growing economy reduced poverty and raised expectations that income poverty could be eliminated within a generation. Yet the official poverty rate has never fallen below its 1973 level and remains higher than the rates in many other advanced economies. In this book, editors Maria Cancian and Sheldon Danziger and leading poverty researchers assess why the War on Poverty was not won and analyze the most promising strategies to reduce poverty in the twenty-first century economy. Changing Poverty, Changing Policies documents how economic, social, demographic, and public policy changes since the early 1970s have altered who is poor and where antipoverty initiatives have kept pace or fallen behind. Part I shows that little progress has been made in reducing poverty, except among the elderly, in the last three decades. The chapters examine how changing labor market opportunities for less-educated workers have increased their risk of poverty (Rebecca Blank), and how family structure changes (Maria Cancian and Deborah Reed) and immigration have affected poverty (Steven Raphael and Eugene Smolensky). Part II assesses the ways childhood poverty influences adult outcomes. Markus Jäntti finds that poor American children are more likely to be poor adults than are children in many other industrialized countries. Part III focuses on current antipoverty policies and possible alternatives. Jane Waldfogel demonstrates that policies in other countries—such as sick leave, subsidized child care, and schedule flexibility—help low-wage parents better balance work and family responsibilities. Part IV considers how rethinking and redefining poverty might take antipoverty policies in new directions. Mary Jo Bane assesses the politics of poverty since the 1996 welfare reform act. Robert Haveman argues that income-based poverty measures should be expanded, as they have been in Europe, to include social exclusion and multiple dimensions of material hardships. Changing Poverty, Changing Policies shows that thoughtful policy reforms can reduce poverty and promote opportunities for poor workers and their families. The authors' focus on pragmatic measures that have real possibilities of being implemented in the United States not only provides vital knowledge about what works but real hope for change.

Legacies of the War on Poverty

Legacies of the War on Poverty PDF Author: Martha J. Bailey
Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation
ISBN: 1610448146
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
Many believe that the War on Poverty, launched by President Johnson in 1964, ended in failure. In 2010, the official poverty rate was 15 percent, almost as high as when the War on Poverty was declared. Historical and contemporary accounts often portray the War on Poverty as a costly experiment that created doubts about the ability of public policies to address complex social problems. Legacies of the War on Poverty, drawing from fifty years of empirical evidence, documents that this popular view is too negative. The volume offers a balanced assessment of the War on Poverty that highlights some remarkable policy successes and promises to shift the national conversation on poverty in America. Featuring contributions from leading poverty researchers, Legacies of the War on Poverty demonstrates that poverty and racial discrimination would likely have been much greater today if the War on Poverty had not been launched. Chloe Gibbs, Jens Ludwig, and Douglas Miller dispel the notion that the Head Start education program does not work. While its impact on children’s test scores fade, the program contributes to participants’ long-term educational achievement and, importantly, their earnings growth later in life. Elizabeth Cascio and Sarah Reber show that Title I legislation reduced the school funding gap between poorer and richer states and prompted Southern school districts to desegregate, increasing educational opportunity for African Americans. The volume also examines the significant consequences of income support, housing, and health care programs. Jane Waldfogel shows that without the era’s expansion of food stamps and other nutrition programs, the child poverty rate in 2010 would have been three percentage points higher. Kathleen McGarry examines the policies that contributed to a great success of the War on Poverty: the rapid decline in elderly poverty, which fell from 35 percent in 1959 to below 10 percent in 2010. Barbara Wolfe concludes that Medicaid and Community Health Centers contributed to large reductions in infant mortality and increased life expectancy. Katherine Swartz finds that Medicare and Medicaid increased access to health care among the elderly and reduced the risk that they could not afford care or that obtaining it would bankrupt them and their families. Legacies of the War on Poverty demonstrates that well-designed government programs can reduce poverty, racial discrimination, and material hardships. This insightful volume refutes pessimism about the effects of social policies and provides new lessons about what more can be done to improve the lives of the poor.

Poorly Understood

Poorly Understood PDF Author: Mark Robert Rank
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190881402
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
What if the idealized image of American societya land of opportunity that will reward hard work with economic successis completely wrong? Few topics have as many myths, stereotypes, and misperceptions surrounding them as that of poverty in America. The poor have been badly misunderstood since the beginnings of the country, with the rhetoric only ratcheting up in recent times. Our current era of fake news, alternative facts, and media partisanship has led to a breeding ground for all types of myths and misinformation to gain traction and legitimacy. Poorly Understood is the first book to systematically address and confront many of the most widespread myths pertaining to poverty. Mark Robert Rank, Lawrence M. Eppard, and Heather E. Bullock powerfully demonstrate that the realities of poverty are much different than the myths; indeed in many ways they are more disturbing. The idealized image of American society is one of abundant opportunities, with hard work being rewarded by economic prosperity. But what if this picture is wrong? What if poverty is an experience that touches the majority of Americans? What if hard work does not necessarily lead to economic well-being? What if the reasons for poverty are largely beyond the control of individuals? And if all of the evidence necessary to disprove these myths has been readily available for years, why do they remain so stubbornly pervasive? These are much more disturbing realities to consider because they call into question the very core of America's identity. Armed with the latest research, Poorly Understood not only challenges the myths of poverty and inequality, but it explains why these myths continue to exist, providing an innovative blueprint for how the nation can move forward to effectively alleviate American poverty.

Ending Poverty in America

Ending Poverty in America PDF Author: John Edwards
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 310

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Book Description
A collection of original essays designed to put the issue of poverty back on the political map in the US, offering a plan to eliminate poverty in 30 years. With contributions on job creation, schools, housing, rural and family life, this forward-thinking selection brings together liberals and conservatives to address one of the great moral and societal issues of modern life.

The American Way of Poverty

The American Way of Poverty PDF Author: Sasha Abramsky
Publisher: Nation Books
ISBN: 1568587260
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 370

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Book Description
Abramsky shows how poverty - a massive political scandal - is dramatically changing in the wake of the Great Recession.

The Other America

The Other America PDF Author: Michael Harrington
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 068482678X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 254

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Book Description
Examines the economic underworld of migrant farm workers, the aged, minority groups, and other economically underprivileged groups.

Agricultural Policies for Poverty Reduction

Agricultural Policies for Poverty Reduction PDF Author: OECD
Publisher: OECD Publishing
ISBN: 9264112901
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
This volume sets out a strategy for raising rural incomes which emphasises the creation of diversified rural economies with opportunities within and outside agriculture.

The Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty in America

The Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty in America PDF Author: David Erickson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Poverty
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
This report--a joint effort of the Federal Reserve's Community Affairs function and the Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy Program--examines the issue of concentrated poverty and profiles 16 high-poverty communities from across the country, including immigrant gateway, Native American, urban, and rural communities. Through these case studies, the report contributes to our understanding of the dynamics of poor people living in poor communities, and the policies that will be needed to bring both into the economic mainstream. It is not the intention of this publication to explain poverty causation. Instead, the goal is to add texture to our understanding of where and how concentrated poverty exists, by studying new areas and by interviewing local stakeholders, including residents, community leaders, and government representatives, to understand how concentrated poverty affects both individuals and communities. The report begins with "Concentrated Poverty in America: An Overview" (Alan Berube) and "Introduction to the Case Studies" (Carolina Reid). It then presents the following 16 case studies: (1) Fresno, California: the West Fresno neighborhood (Naomi Cytron); (2) Cleveland, Ohio: the Central neighborhood (Lisa Nelson); (3) Miami, Florida: the Little Haiti neighborhood (Ana Cruz-Taura and Jessica LeVeen Farr); (4) Martin County, Kentucky (Jeff Gatica); (5) Blackfeet Reservation, Montana (Sandy Gerber, Michael Grover, and Sue Woodrow); (6) Greenville, North Carolina: the West Greenville neighborhood (Carl Neel); (7) Atlantic City, New Jersey: the Bungalow Park/Marina District area (Harriet Newburger, John Wackes, Keith Rolland, and Anita Sands); (8) Austin, Texas: the East Austin neighborhood (Elizabeth Sobel); (9) McKinley County, New Mexico: Crownpoint (Steven Shepelwich and Roger Zalneraitis); (10) McDowell County, West Virginia (Courtney Anderson Mailey); (11) Albany, Georgia: the East Albany neighborhood (Jessica LeVeen Farr and Sibyl Slade); (12) El Paso, Texas: the Chamizal neighborhood (Roy Lopez); (13) Springfield, Massachusetts: Old Hill, Six Corners, and the South End neighborhoods (DeAnna Green); (14) Rochester, New York: the Northern Crescent neighborhoods (Alexandra Forter Sirota and Yazmin Osaki); (15) Holmes County, Mississippi (Ellen Eubank); and (16) Milwaukee, Wisconsin: the Northwest neighborhood (Jeremiah Boyle). Following these case studies is "Learning from Concentrated Poverty in America: A Synthesis of Themes from the Case Studies" (Alan Berube, David Erickson, and Carolina Reid). Appended to this report are: (A) References for Comparison Statistics Tables; (B) Literature Review: Federal Reserve System Poverty-Related Research; (C) References for Overview in Alphabetical Order (by First Author); and (D) Photo Credits. (Individual case studies contain tables, figures, and footnotes.).