The Color of Welfare: How Racism Undermined the War on Poverty

Jill Quadagno argues that governments (reflecting the sentiments of moneyed constituents) bought into and even reinforced stereotypes about women of color being 'welfare queens'. Contrasting with the atmosphere of the authorizing legislation, society believed that these women needed to work outside the home and those who did not were 'lazy'. Black women especially found themselves being portrayed as the 'outsider'. White women were still on welfare and had always comprised a majority of the program recipients, but politicians knew they could not create public outrage and internal disorder against somebody who more or less resembled the status quo. They had to attack somebody who was so `different' from themselves. Neither the realities of a tight job market, lax community infrastructure, non-existent mass transit, or the exorbitant cost of quality and safe child care shattered those carefully-spun stereotypes. That positioning also made it easy for the government to ignore how little the monthly check was actually buying by the 1990's because it had not been adjusted for inflation.

The Color of Welfare does an excellent job of tracing the evolution of the U.S. welfare state. Quadagno explores the major programs of the welfare system. The main conclusion is that racism was the major factor in the development of policies designed to help those in need. Quadagno chronicles the political games and their impact on the services to the poor. Each major program or department responsible for the distribution of welfare benefits is explored and critiqued. Overall, a good source of background knowledge of the maze of the programs and benefits that make up the welfare system.