The war on poverty : a new grassroots history, 1964-1980 / edited by Annelise Orleck and Lisa Gayle Hazirjian.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Orleck, Annelise.

Hazirjian, Lisa Gayle, 1968-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Poverty--Government policy--United States--History--20th century.

Poverty.

Economic assistance, Domestic--United States--History--20th century.

Economic assistance, Domestic.

Poor--Political activity--United States--History--20th century.

Poor.

Community development--United States--History--20th century.

Community development.

Public welfare--United States--History--20th century.

Public welfare.

History.

Poor--Political activity.

Poverty--Government policy.

United States.

Physical Description:

ix, 503 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Athens : University of Georgia Press, [2011]

Summary:

Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty has long been portrayed as the most potent symbol of all that is wrong with big government. Conservatives deride the War on Poverty for corruption and the creation of "poverty pimps," and even some liberals carefully distance themselves from it. Examining the long War on Poverty from the 1960s onward, this book makes a controversial argument that the programs were in many ways a success, reducing poverty rates and weaving a social safety net that has proven as enduring as programs that came out of the New Deal.

The War on Poverty also transformed American politics from the grassroots up, mobilizing poor people across the nation. Blacks in crumbling cities, rural whites in Appalachia, Cherokees in Oklahoma, Puerto Bicans in the Bronx, migrant Mexican farmworkers, and Chinese immigrants from New York to California built social programs based on Johnson's vision of a greater, more just society. Contributors to this volume chronicle these vibrant and largely unknown histories while not shying away from the flaws and failings of the movement-including inadequate funding, co-optation by local political elites, and blindness to the reality that mothers and their children made up most of the poor.

In the twenty-first century, when one in seven Americans receives food stamps and community health centers are the largest primary care system in the nation, the War on Poverty is as relevant as ever. This book helps us to understand the turbulent era out of which it emerged and why it remains so controversial to this day. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part I Battles over Community Action

"This Government Is with Us": Lyndon Johnson and the Grassroots War on Poverty / Guian A. McKee McKee, Guian A. 31

"To Challenge the Status Quo by Any Means": Community Action and Representational Politics in 1960s Baltimore / Rhonda Y. Williams Williams, Rhonda Y. 63

Ideological Diversity and the Implementation of the War on Poverty in Houston / Wesley G. Phelps Phelps, Wesley G. 87

Defining the Space of Participation in a Northern City: Tejanos and the War on Poverty in Milwaukee / Marc S. Rodriguez Rodriguez, Marc S. 110

Part II Poor Mothers and the War on Poverty

Saving Babies in Memphis: The Politics of Race, Health, and Hunger during the War on Poverty / Laurie B. Green Green, Laurie B. 133

"Someday ... the Colored and White Will Stand Together": The War on Poverty, Black Power Politics, and Southern Women's Interracial Alliances / Christina Greene Greene, Christina 159

"Parent Power": Evelina López Antonetty, the United Bronx Parents, and the War on Poverty / Adina Back Back, Adina 184

Gender, Civil Rights Activism, and the War on Poverty in Los Angeles / Robert Bauman Bauman, Robert 209

Part III The War on Poverty, the Civil Rights Movement, and Southern Politics

Poverty Wars in the Louisiana Delta: White Resistance, Black Power, and the Poorest Place in America / Kent B. Germany Germany, Kent B. 231

Plantation Politics: The Tufts-Delta Health Center and Intraracial Class Conflict in Mississippi, 1965-1972 / Greta de Jong Jong, Greta de 256

Fighting for the Child Development Group of Mississippi: Poor People, Local Politics, and the Complicated Legacy of Head Start / Amy Jordan Jordan, Amy 280

Going Back to Selma: Organizing for Change in Dallas County after the March to Montgomery / Susan Youngblood Ashmore Ashmore, Susan Youngblood 308

The War on Poverty and the Chicano Movement in Texas: Confronting "Tio Tomás" and the "Gringo Pseudoliberals" / William Clayson Clayson, William 334

Part IV What Do They Really Mean by Community Development?

Looking Back to the City in the Hills: The Council of the Southern Mountains and a Longer View of the War on Poverty in the Appalachian South, 1913-1970 / Thomas Kiffmeyer Kiffmeyer, Thomas 359

The War on Poverty in Mississippi and Oklahoma: Beyond Black and White / Daniel M. Cobb Cobb, Daniel M. 387

The House That "Equality" Built: The Asian American Movement and the Legacy of Community Action / Karen M. Tani Tani, Karen M. 411.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0820339490

9780820331010

0820331015

9780820339498

OCLC:

709408077

Publisher Number:

99946135407