"Welfare Reform and Women's Wages"

Reiko Hayashi

San Francisco State University

Abstract: The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 seeks to get single mothers off welfare and into the job market. Women on welfare, however, will accomplish self-sufficiency only when the jobs available to them pay high enough wages to pull them and their families out of poverty. This study, using multiple regression analyses on data from the Family Income Study (FIS), examines factors that account for wage levels of women workers who are at risk of requiring public assistance. The findings show that for many women workers income from their jobs alone is not sufficient to support their families. The reality of the labor market suggests that a harsh future awaits welfare recipients who are leaving the rolls.

"Making Women and Children Matter: Feminist Ethics Confronts Welfare Policy"

Pamela K. Brubaker

California Lutheran University

Abstract: This interdisciplinary article analyzes recent federal welfare legislation and welfare reform proposals at the state level from the perspective of feminist ethics. Drawing on feminist social theory and welfare regime analysis, it critically explores the presuppositions about economic value, dependence, and the common good which underlie conservative, liberal and progressive proposals. The work of feminist scholars and activists is the basis for principles for public policy based on interdependence, shared responsibility, and valuing care-giving activities, which more adequately promote the well-being of women, children, and families than current programs.

"Homeless Families with Children: Barriers to Finding Decent Housing"

Namkee G. Choi

State University of New York at Buffalo

and

Lidia J. Snyder

Berkshire Farm Center and Services for Youth

Abstract: Previous studies of homelessness have not adequately addressed the relationship between deteriorating living conditions of inner-city neighborhoods and family homelessness. Interviews with 50 families with children who were residents of homeless shelters in two large cities in New York reveal that substandard housing, unscrupulous landlords, and drug-related violence and crime in neighborhoods, as well as nonpayment of rent and domestic violence, are significant causes of homelessness. The families also identified the unsafe neighborhood environment and substandard housing, as well as high rent, long waiting lists for public or subsidized housing units, and lack of transportation, as the major barriers to finding decent housing. Policy implications are discussed.

THOUGHTS ON POVERTY AND INEQUALITY

"How Liberal Ideology Assists the Growth of Fascism: A Critique of the Sociology of William Julius Wilson"

Steven J. Rosenthal

Hampton University

Abstract: If only liberal Democrat Bill Clinton could abolish welfare, only liberal social scientist William Julius Wilson could provide the most useful ideological justifications for the abolition of welfare. As author of four influential books and advisor to key politicians, Wilson has made the "underclass" a popular term, legitimized liberal racism, and justified the abolition of welfare, affirmative action, and other "racially targeted programs." Often misinterpreted as a Marxist because of his emphasis on class, not race, Wilson in fact is a black reincarnation of Daniel Patrick Moynihan who prescribes capitalist super-exploitation of low wage workers as the cure for ghetto related behavior.