welfare recipients

"The idea that the government should intervene to lift people up from poverty and starvation is relatively new in America, where until the early twentieth century the misery of workhouses and poorhouses were all some people could count on. Since the Great Depression and the beginning of Social Security, the social safety net has expanded to cover more people and try to help them with more problems including poverty, starvation, homelessness, and lack of health care. With this book, readers will analyze difficult queries; Whom does the safety net catch? Whom should it catch? Is it enough, or is it too much? These are questions being hotly debated in the government at all levels now, and the answers will decide the future of millions of people in America"--Provided by the publisher.

Profiles the daily lives of two welfare mothers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in an attempt to expose and dispel common stereotypes and misconceptions about families on welfare.

Contains three stories about women coping with the hardships of living in the ghetto, including Lyric Chrenshaw, who relies on her looks to get what she wants, Juicy Brown, a welfare recipient trying to deal with a scandalous rumor, and Precious Paine, a hustler who has to choose between her business and a man.

Studies the economic life of single mothers on welfare and in low-paying jobs, and argues that while women who hold jobs do have more income, they are less able to make ends meet due to the increased costs of child care, transportation, and other expenses.

Examines the development of the government work programs of the Great Depression era, including the Works Progress Administration, and Federal Emergency Relief Administration, and the Civil Works Administration; discusses their successes and failures; and considers the lessons learned from such programs.

Uses first-person accounts of four women who are raising children on welfare to provide a look at the problems and concerns involved in this system.

Mary Childers discusses how her mother's many failed relationships and her childhood spent in poverty influenced the choices she has made and her goals in life.