Chapter Summary

What Is Poverty? (pp. 222-229)

In 1998, a family of four would have been officially classified at the poverty level with an annual income of $16,660 or less. This definition is based on a Department of Agriculture formula. In brief, the above figure is three times the current estimated cost of an economy food plan. In practice, this is somewhat more complex, with variations for family size, sex and ages of members, place of residence, and so forth. Many people feel that the official definition of poverty is based on a barely adequate budget for a barely adequate diet. The official definition is controversial on numerous grounds, but especially because it excludes many people who define themselves, and whom most of us would define, as poor.

In 1998, 34.5 million people were classified as poor-representing 12.7 percent of the population. One third or more Americans will be touched by poverty at some point in their lives. In terms of rates, minorities have higher rates of poverty than do whites. The high rate of poverty among children is something new in American history. There is a core of people who remain in poverty, an underclass that experiences chronic hunger and malnutrition, unemployment, and substandard housing. And, there are the homeless. Although the proportion of Americans who are poor is lower than it was in the past, it seems reasonable to assume that poverty is more difficult when the proportion gets smaller. There has been a redistribution of income in this country during the 20th century, but it has not benefited the poor--the richest Americans continue to control the bulk of the nation's wealth.

What are some of the probabilities associated with the poor compared to the non-poor? The former as infants are more likely to die. Their children, though intelligent, are more apt to fail in school or drop out. They are more likely to become mentally ill, to lose their jobs, and to drop out of the labor force. It is more probable that the poor will experience hostility and mistrust rather than neighborliness from those around them and less probable that they will participate in meaningful groups and associations. They are more likely to suffer chronic illness yet less apt to have health insurance. In short, poverty diminishes the quality of a person's life in many ways-including the ultimate deprivation, the probability of death at a younger age.

The authors assert that poverty continues in America in great part because of the distribution of power and because those who control the wealth are among the most powerful politically, economically, and socially. Two structural aspects particularly detrimental to the poor are our bureaucracy's multiple decision-making centers and its middle-class composition. These aspects mean that various levels of organization and government, including middle-class-manned bureaucracies, operate in terms of vested interests of middle and upper classes. Ironically, the well-to-do and powerful give to each other, through government actions, what they say is immoral to give to the poor. Also, the economy operates against the poor, for they have the jobs with the lowest wages but pay higher prices for consumer goods. Poverty tends to be perpetuated by such factors and by social psychological factors such as anti-intellectual attitudes and interaction patterns. Even so, realistic opportunities would allow such negative features and the fatalism and resignation of the poor to be overcome.

The authors criticize our present system of public welfare and suggest that a continuing effort should be made to establish a welfare system that works. Workfare is apparently the policy for the future but there are arguments for and against such programs. The goal should not be to eliminate all government payments but to eliminate poverty.