Regulating the Poor: The Functions of Public Welfare

i can pretty much guarantee that after reading this book, one will never quite look at welfare in the same way as before. The main premise of this book is that government provides aid for the poor to control political unrest and to control labor.The book starts off by tracing the history and development of welfare in western civilization. Prior to the early 16th century, caring for the poor was considered to be primarily the responsibility of the church or of those of the more prosperous who tried to purchase their salvation through almsgiving. Leaving charity to the church meant that few received aid and those not necessarily according to their need. This increased social unrest so governments began to be involved in providing for the poor. This was done for two primary reasons: 1.) To control social order and 2.) To extol the virtue of labor even at the lowest wages by making the treatment of the destitute so punitive and degrading that the no one wants to descend into beggary and pauperism.The book details such early government programs as workhouses, labor yards, and poor law subsidies whereby parish churches were required to care for the poor in their area.In the united States, welfare was addressed somewhat differently. Poverty in the U.S. was regarded as the obvious consequence of sloth and sinfulness. Relief was scattered and fragmentary-each township or county provided for its hungry in whatever manner it saw fit-giving of food, incarceration in almshouses, or indentured service. Poor relief was a local, not a state or national responsibility.During the great Depression, unemployment became so widespread that the government was forced to develop programs to assist the poor and the unemployed. At first the government focused on direct relief, but as imm4ediate needs were satisfied, the government moved on to work relief which, interestingly, was opposed by business leaders because it was felt that government was encroaching on areas that had been primarily reserved for private enterprise.As conditions stabilized, US policies changed to conform with the earlier view of poverty as being the rsult of sloth and sinfulness. Relief programs excluded able-bodied men. Man-in-the-house rules excluded aid to a mother who was in any way associated with a man, particularly if the man lived in her house. Women and/or children were given aid but at the same time assigned to private entrepreneurs who were told to use them in any way possible.With the growing mechanization of southern agriculture, blacks migrated into the cities, particularly the northern cities where relief rules were not as restrictive. Four million blacks came to cities in less than three decades-congregated in largest cities in the north-New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, Los Angeles, Washington. Industry required an increasingly skilled labor force just as unskilled blacks reached cities in large numbers from the fields of the south, consequently, unemployment rose. Unrest mounted among poor blacks, culminating in the Civil Rights demonstrations of the early 60's.Then was born the Great society as Democrats realized that blacks were located in states of the most strategic importance in presidential contests. Democrats were losing traditional support in the South, so they needed the support of the northern cities. Service programs were developed for inner city as part of LBJ's "War on Poverty". According to the book, the true objective of the "War on Poverty" was to reach blacks and integrate them into urban political system. Method was to offer federal funds for the ghettoes and to use federal funds to create pressure for reallocation of municipal services.This book is eminently readable. I was assigned to read it for a college class and did not approach it with much enthusiasm, but I ended up thanking my professor for assigning it to me. Whether or not one buys into the book's overall premise, it certainly stimulates discussion about the overall treatment of poverty in the U.S. interrelationship of government welfare policies, racial politics, and politcal power plays.I would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to get a view of how society has responded to the needs of the poor in history, and how we continue to repond to the needs of the poor today.

It’s hard to imagine two social scientists examining the dependency and dysfunction of Americans whose income comes not from wages earned but from welfare bestowed and decide that what America needs is … more dependency.Surely not.If living near Tribal reservation land shows anything, it shows the human misery that results when the work-support connection is severed.Nevertheless, Pliven and Coward would reduce us all to such a state.Their writing demonstrates the link between riots and bigger welfare benefits, and they recommend that rioting become more widespread. They trace civil unrest in America across a century and note that the endgame of riots is almost always richer public welfare spending. They also admonish the government to de-emphasize the “deservingness” or otherwise of the poor, and simply pay off the poor as a matter of course. They accept it as a given that no person born in poverty (particularly ghetto poverty) will ever escape, and that education and employment opportunities are wasted on this group. Buy them off. Then incite riots and the money gets bigger.They wrote this in 1971.They deplore the idea that people who refuse to work should suffer the degradation of reduced social status or, indeed, poverty. This sets up the hippies pretty well, as they drop out of productive work and demand wealth and attention. See also, Occupy Wall Street in 2011.Want to know why the Great Society programs made no improvements at all? Look right here. The programs were designed to sink minority populations into ever-greater dependence on government, with the goal of eradicating the social and moral benefits of work and achievement.No thanks. I choose life.

Can't recommend this book enough. Really pulled together for me a lot of thoughts about class and filled in parts of a picture I had been trying to see. Addresses a part of economic social control that's often hard to understand or just carelessly ignored. Also it's not written in the kind of leftist conspiracy style that has you second guessing the author's trustworthiness. It is an excellent piece of academic sociology with a radical understanding, and you feel both parts of that from the authors. Beautiful sociological language and methodology--with every now and then a side comment about revolution. Great clearly laid-out evidence, too. Kind of resembles The New Jim Crow in the sense that people interested in these kinds of issues should keep it close by as a reference, although of course this book was written first.

I had to read this book for graduate school. Was so well written, but I lost it so I ordered a new copy on Amazon. Richard Cloward was a genius

Used this for Graduate school

Gave it 2 stars because it is information we all need to know BUTIT SHOWS THE CORRUPTION GOING ON RIGHT NOW.It's Disgusting that our current government is applying this to a free people and a free nation.

I cannot say anything about the book contents because I didn't read the book. Amazon, however, provides accurate descriptions of the books condition. If needed their return policy is fabulous, taking the risk out of shipping online. We didn't need to return this item though as it was just what was expected. Thank you.

Well written, easy to understand for those who have taken courses in political economy, social policy, and human behavior in the social environment. However, still an understandable read without any previous knowledge in this field. Definitely a gold standard. And it arrived quickly.

An alternative radical point of view to the welfare support offered through public funding i.e that it is set at a level to prevent outright resistance from the poorer in society.

The edition I received is published on paper of very low quality. Very thin (you can see what is printed on the other side of the page) and almost grey in color.

Good read.

As expected and delivered quickly.