Welfare Reform Research Paper

The effects of the 1996 welfare reform bill helped declined caseloads on the social and economic well-being of fragile families, single mothers, and children. Although, the welfare reform was documented for making several positive changes such as reducing poverty rates, lowering the out of-wedlock childbearing, and formulated a better family structure, it is undeniable that poverty remained high among single mothers and their children. The reality of the matter was that most welfare recipients experienced serious barriers to maintain a stable employment due to their lack of skills, not having anyone available to take care of their young children when they leave for work as well as not gaining long-time employment with decent pay to help foster the family. As a result, most poor women and children were faced with the instability of economic and social future as welfare eligibility exhausted their efforts of supporting their families.

There are many myths behind the word and status called “Poverty”, this is a highly controversial issue that has affected millions of people worldwide. In society, there is a hierarchy in society and people’s perception of poverty ranges in thought processes such as in our social imagination. There are various reasons people are living in poverty and how it should be addressed. There is a large divide in between socioeconomic classes and this class system has changed people in many different aspects of their life. Some American people living in poverty lack of opportunities and resources to excel in society. People living in poverty can cause no sense of aspiration and not feeling included in society so usually do not become greater than their present circumstances. In this western society we live in, there is a consistent divide in a western society, the upper class will always regulate

In the article “Poverty” by The State of Working America it shows that the poverty rates in the Unites States through statistics. Statistics have shown that 15.1 percent of Americans were living in poverty in 2010. This was a slightly huge increase from the poverty rate in 2007. Statistics have also shown that 45.8 percent of children who living in poverty are African American and only 14.5 percent of white children are living in poverty today. Statistics also show that “among racial and ethnic groups, African Americans had the highest poverty rate, 27.4 percent, followed by Hispanics at 26.6 percent and whites at 9.9 percent.” (Poverty, 1) In addition this article also states that “Income inequality is the largest factor contributing to higher poverty rates. Increased numbers of minorities and single-mother-headed households are often cited as determinants of higher poverty rates, though they are much smaller contributing factors.” (Poverty, 2) This shows that the “The War on Poverty” legislation by President Lyndon B. Johnson did not actually help solve the poverty issue in the Unites States because poverty in America still exist

America has not always had this concentration of poverty that we are seeing today. Between the 1950s and the 1970s poverty fell because the economy was booming and average income was rising. There was a total elimination of absolute poverty in the country, but at the 21st century, 1 in 10 American were poor. This started in the 1970s when the US hit an oil crisis and poverty began to climb back up. From that time until the end of the 1980s poverty became more concentrated in urban areas. We also experienced a large influx of Latin American immigrants, which reshaped poverty. Certain local governments also affected poverty by limiting welfare support to families headed by a married couple, and millions of single mothers were dropped from welfare

The number of children who are living in poverty have decreased for the first time in almost ten years. The Census Bureau reported a 0.5 percent decrease of Americans living in poverty from 2012 to 2013. Poverty is among the country’s contemporary social problems in the Twenty-First Century. According to the Census Bureau, 45.3 million people were categorized as living in poverty in 2013. To address contemporary social problems like poverty, one must take an in depth look at the reasons why there are so many people dealing with poverty and the challenges that arise from trying to escape it.

But federal aid programs have not helped the poor become self-sufficient or reduced the poverty levels. Ever since welfare has been created it has weakened the American work ethic and encouraged out-of-wedlock births. That unfortunate “tradition” keeps getting passed down from generation to generation (DeHaven). An abundant amount of families out there truly need assistance. The troublesome reality is that the number of people trying to take whatever they can get outweighs the number that’s just trying to get back up on their

Poverty has been around as long as there has been an America. Programs have been set in place to help offset the issue, such as Food Stamps and housing. The government’s implementation of some of these programs is to ensure that the poor have a place to sleep and adequate meals to eat. There are issues with these programs that contribute to the furthering of poverty, but for the most part are more helpful than harmful. While there is a chance that there will always be a poverty line that Americans will be under, there are solutions that can be implemented towards getting many of these people above it. Some options might include keeping jobs within the

Individuals in true need of aid were provided the basic necessities to keep them afloat. However, today that has changed. People constantly freeload off of the system, and nobody stops them. People who don’t really need assistance still get welfare checks each month. This should not be allowed to happen. People who receive welfare checks each month spend them on luxuries and unnecessary items. This should not be allowed to happen. Taxpayers are forced to fund a program that does not reduce poverty like it is supposed to. This should not happen. It is time that Americans open their eyes. Government officials, lawmakers, taxpayers, welfare recipients, everyone. They need to open their eyes and take a look at what is happening to

On the other, they have demonstrated a callous disregard for persons in need.” (Jansson 2). This quote is a perfect starting point for understanding the traditional view of the United States welfare state. While we have many policies designed to help those in need, these policies simply do not do enough. For the most part, United States welfare programs are based on a means tested program. This means that in order to receive benefits from any certain program, Medicare and Medicaid for example, you must have a specific level of income. Means tested programs fail to cover many of the Americans who need help from these services but do not qualify because of their income. This is especially true in cases of single-headed families and even more so for those families of single mothers. While some programs may benefit certain groups such as the poor and elderly, they do not cover middle class citizens who can encounter real financial trouble if a medical emergency were to happen. This could sink a family completely financially because of the fact that the United States doesn’t have a universal health care system like most advanced industrial nations have. The family also would not be able to receive benefits from any programs either because they do not meet the means tested requirement

The poor is also from the changing labor market. In recent years, the labor market has gone from industrial to service related jobs. This itself has eliminated many good paying jobs for people who has little education. These people usually have a dead-end jobs, with no benefits at minimum wages that does not pay enough to pay someone out of the poor social class. This is the major cause of poverty.

Ronald Reagan once said, “We fought a war on poverty, and poverty won.” I read the book, Dancing in the dark by Morris Dickstein. This book was about the great depression, and the impacts it had on American life. The traditional thought of poverty, people dying of hunger and people lying in the roads, has been erased. America has abolished poverty by the traditional standards but the thought of poverty and what it is has changed. In America we consider poverty to be spending all your money on bills, so you have no money left for food to feed your family. We consider poverty to be just being poor. One-Third of our population makes less than $38,000. This is not enough to be able to be above the poverty line. Anything below this

Did you know that around 15 million Americans, and single mother and their children are on welfare? Sometimes working 20 hours is not a possibility for a full time single parent, due to the expenses of babysitters, and schooling. These parents have only one option, which is to apply for welfare to get the assistance required to cover those expenditures so they will be able to work the 20 hours mandatory. Other single parents cannot find a job or have a challenging time keeping them due to mild disabilities and mental health issues( in line citation interview), which are out of their control. This causes worthy families to lose their rights to their children. When that happens numerous children will be taken away from their homes and placed into child protection services. Which could lead to countless future difficulties within the child’s life, when in fact this contradicts the intentions of the welfare reform act. Even though this problem can be completely avoided if benefits were not cut or denied. Although, the main idea of the welfare reform act is to insure the well-being of young children, the loss of benefits could leave many children poverty stricken. Which, ironically is what Clinton and others involved were trying to

Although many people do not realize this, poverty has a great impact on out society. The rapid increase of death rate, crime rate, and environmental destruction have everything to do with the horrible state of poverty. These problems are booming all over our society today causing many speculations, but the reason many just be clear and simple. Poverty.

39.8 Americans million people live in poverty according to U.S. Census Bureau data taken from 2008. In 2012 the unemployment rate was at 8.3. As of May 2017, the unemployment level is at 4.3 and is continuing to drop as years go on. This however does not mean that children are starting to get the care they need. Child poverty is the highest we have ever seen it since 1993. Poverty has ever lasting negative effects on children that can be carried on into their adulthood lives. Poverty effects a child's physical health, mental health, and behavior.

Poverty is one of the leading causes of corruption and crime in the United States. Poverty is another term for “poor” or “living in destitution” without the proper basic needs of survival, such as shelter, food, water, and clothing. Poverty is a big epidemic across the world, especially in third world countries such as Africa and Brazil. The United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, so why does poverty exist? Poverty is measured by two lines, the absolute and relative poverty line. Absolute poverty refers to the lack of basic needs, such as clothing, shelter, and food. Relative poverty refers to lack of resources others does not meet to a certain standard of living. Even though both measures of poverty are different, the need to improve both is very important. The most recent poverty statistical facts are based on the U.S Census Bureau’s 2016 estimates. The report and findings are based on income inequality, earnings, income, and poverty in the U.S. According to the U.S Census Bureau in 2016 the poverty rates were 40.6 million people (12.7%), that is 2.5 million less than the poverty rate in 2015, which was 13.5%.