War on Poverty

The War on Poverty was a campaign of social and economic development in the United States during the 1960's.

Historical Notes

The U.S. government continues to use the antiquated Orshansky measure of the poverty line, a measure which is only adjusted for inflation, and not adjusted for the actual cost of living against median income. In the 1960s the average cost of living was a mere 30% of individual income, today the cost of living averages 50% of household income. Because of this skew in measuring the poverty line it is believed that the current U.S. Census statistics published could actually be closer to 50 million Americans.

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The 'War on Poverty' was enacted in response to hard economic times which saw a poverty rate of around 25%. However, President Johnson's 'War on Poverty' speech was delivered at a time of recovery and some viewed it as an effort to get Congress to authorize social welfare programs. The poverty level had fallen from 22.4% in 1959 to 19% in 1964 when the War on Poverty was announced.

Related Topics:
Recovery - Congress - Social welfare - 1959 - 1964

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The concept of a war on poverty waned after the 1960s. Deregulation, growing criticism of the welfare state, and an ideological shift toward small government in the 1980s and 1990s culminated in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.

Related Topics:
Welfare state - Small government - 1980s - 1990s - Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act - 1996

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