America%E2%80%99s Poor and the Great Recession

Seefeldt, a University of Michigan social work professor, and Graham, the dean of Indiana University%E2%80%99s School of Public and Environmental Affairs and a former White House budget official, argue that the country%E2%80%99s faltering fortunes has produced the types of poverty usually found in the developing world, not in a wealthy country like the U.S. The most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression found 50 million Americans in poverty, with persistent high rates among young people and minorities. In this concise, data-rich overview of the economic challenges facing the poor, the authors point to the well-understood structural barriers like education and a "culture of poverty" as contributors to ongoing economic hardship. But though policymakers prevented many from falling through the country%E2%80%99s meager safety net during the recession, the authors worry that new federal cuts to discretionary programs like food banks and higher education assistance will affect state aid sources and further harm the poor. The prescriptions to get at the root causes of poverty offered here are familiar ones, but in the long run, better linkages between such programs and economic indicators would do more for the poor than being subject to the political whims of federal lawmakers. (Feb.)