History of Welfare Policy
(1) What existed before welfare law? How did Judeo-Christian doctrine treat welfare?

(2) During the Middle Ages and Organic Society: Who cared for the poor?

(3) Breakdown of Organic Society and Rise of Welfare Laws and Intervention of Government:

(4) 1349 Statute of Laborers: What did it do? What were the underlying causes that led to its passage?

(5) 1601 Poor Law (Last of a Series of Laws inspired by rioting and thievery) established following principles:

A) State (governmental) responsibility to supplement needs of certain poor.

B) Local governments responsible for their own poor and not supposed to foist them off on others.  Authorized governments to tax residents to support welfare assistance.

C) Poor categorized into able-bodied (undeserving) and handicapped (deserving) poor.

D) Poor can be coerced to work. Adults indentured as servants and children apprenticed out.

E) Each local government is responsible for its own poor.

F) Family Responsibility: Parents, children, grandparents, responsible for each other.

U.S. Approach: 1815-1845:

States adopted English Poor Laws with modifications. But delegated welfare to local governments.

At beginning of period, welfare primarily OUTDOOR relief. What is outdoor relief?

Through time, INDOOR relief grew. Poorhouses. All 3 groups of poor (able-bodied, handicapped, children) in same institution.

Calvinist Protestant Ethic: Had major impact.  How did Calvanism affect attitude towards the poor and welfare?

Dorothea Dix and reform of Institutions. Rise of State institutions. Irony: state institutions began as reform because reformers thought that state institutions would be better than local asylums but the state asylums wound up as "snake pits" later on.

U.S. Welfare: 1845-1900

1) Industrial Revolution Period for U.S.

2) Strong Capitalistic spirit. Horatio Alger Myth appears. Little or no role by Federal/State government.

3) Laissez Faire philosophy (Adam Smith): What does it mean? How does it influence attitude toward welfare?

4) Social Darwinism Strong:  What is it? How would it influence attitude toward welfare?  
5) Principle of Less Eligibility established in England. What does this principle state? What impact has this had on welfare?

6) Private voluntary efforts major role in welfare:

7) Protestant and later Catholic Charities: rescue children from parents.

8) Salvation Army and other Missionary churches.

9) Charity Organization Societies: What did they do?

10) Settlement Houses: Jane Addams.  What was settlement house approach to helping poor?  

11) Concept of Poverty as due to secular causes and Government role:

12) Urban Political Machines:

13) Prohibition Movement.

1900-1920: The Progressive Era.

Rise of Liberal Protestantism. To Create a moral and just society seen as an integral part of religious activity.  What were some examples of reforms?  

Successes:

1) Child Labor Act (1916)

2) Prohibition (1920)

3) Women's Suffrage (1920)

4) Aid to Dependent Children established in cities like Chicago. Replaced placement in foster homes with aid to parents.

5) Worker's Compensation Laws: 43 states passed laws from 1909-1920.

1920's: Business Era:

1. Failure of Progressive Laws led to disillusionment with government role.
2. Growth in philanthropic charity such as Community Chest (goal to make charity more businesslike).

Depression, New Deal and Consequences:

1. Few protections for workers before New Deal.
2. Private charities and states overwhelmed by need.
3. Idea that unemployment due to laziness discredited.

1935 Social Security Act:

(1) Work Relief: WPA public jobs programs.

(2) Unemployment Insurance: Federal role collect $ and give back to states.

(3) Aid to Dependent children: Feds gave matching grants to states.

(4) Old Age Assistance (OAA) & Aid to Blind (AB)

Aid to Disabled (AD added later)

Also based on matching grants. Gray Lobby helped to pass.

Old Age Insurance (OAI) = program now known as Social Security. Totally Federal program in contrast to others.

Overall Straregy of New Deal: Roosevelt no fan of welfare.  

Incrementalism and Social Security Act: Roosevelt knew that incomplete. Add-ons later:

1939 Survivor's Insurance.

1956 Disability Insurance.

1965 Health Insurance (Medicare)

Note:  Social Security's formal name now:  OASD(H)I 

    What does this acronym stand for? 

1940's: Marked high point for employment, near full employment.

1950's: Little Change in policy but important social changes, especially movement of middle class from cities to suburbs.

1960s: Great Society: Second great period of activity concerning welfare.

1964-1965 Period:   What were  the major programs created in the War on Poverty?

Later: Supreme Court Decisions opened up more aid as many restrictions on welfare overturned (e.g., state residency requirements in Shapiro vs. Thompson 1969 decision).

What was the major difference between Roosevelt's New Deal and Johnson's Great Society programs? What were underlying causes of these differences?

Rise of backlash against welfare, especially amongst blue collar workers. Why?

By late 1968, Work Incentive Needs Programs (WIN) established. 30 and 1/3 program:   How did this program work to try to provide incentives to welfare recipients to work?

1975: EITC first passed (Earned Income Tax Credit).

Reagan:

Attacked Welfare. Major cutbacks aimed at working poor. Why?

Emphasized block grants.  What are block grants?     Why do Reagan  and conservatives favor block grants?

Moderate-Conservative Consensus developed which led to passage of 1988 Family Support Act.

Emphasized combined use of carrots  and sticks . Give example of carrots? Sticks?

Bipartisan support for big expansion of EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit)

X. Clinton Administration

(1) Failure of Health Reform.

(2) Capture of Congress by Republicans.

(3) Welfare Reform: How does it differ from Family Support Act and other previous reforms?

XI.  Making Sense of it all:  One Liberal Interpretation of History of Welfare:  Piven and Cloward Hypothesis: Frances Fox Piven and Richard Cloward argue that public welfare is not altruistic but a strategy used by the powerful to control the poor.  Why do they believe this to be the case?  What examples can be given to support this argument?

One Conservative Interpretation of history of welfare: (e.g., Charles Murray):  The expansions in public welfare, especially those during the Great Society, led  to disincentives to work,  a corruption of values and thus welfare resulted in more welfare.

What is your interpretation of the history of welfare programs?  What lessons do you think we can learn from history of welfare?