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Chapter Six

The Family, the State, and Social Policy

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Government Assistance in the United States “Welfare state”: measures

enacted during the Depression to protect people from harshness of capitalist system- social welfare was to help retired workers and widows

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Social Security Act of 1935 Social Security, pensions for elderly Unemployment compensation Aid to mothers with dependent children

Later became AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent Children)

In 1996 it became PRWORA (Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996)

Government Assistance in the United States

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Measures conceived in a different time, followed traditional division of labor

Changes in family life, such as divorce, single parenting without marriage, and women working outside the home, forced another look at government policies

Public support rose in the 80s and 90s for new laws and policies

Government Assistance in the United States

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Debate centered on: How to respond to growth of single-

parent families and childhood poverty Reform welfare Enforce child support obligation of fathers

Whether/how to assist parents employed outside the home

Child care assistance Work leave

Government Assistance in the United States

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State = a government that claims the right to rule a given territory and its population

Nation = a people with shared economic and cultural interests

Nation-state = combines the governmental and cultural connotations of both terms

The Family and the State

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Response to capitalist economic system

Welfare state Government enacts measures to protect workers and families from harsh effects of system = basis of current U.S. government assistance

The Welfare State

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The Family Wage System Family wage system = husband

earns outside home wife tends to house and children Moral vision specifies that the family

works best when men and women inhabit separate spheres

Never a reality for many working-class and minority families

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Welfare system followed traditional ideas about division of labor in family wage system

Social Security Act of 1935 set the tone for future government policies

1950s lifestyle supported this type of structure

The Family Wage System

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The Family Wage System

1960s War on Poverty Social Security benefits increased Medicare introduced Single parents were eligible for benefits,

like widows Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)

1964 Civil Rights Act banned discrimination against women in hiring and wages

Weakened family wage system

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Family Policy Debates Family Policy not an issue until mid-

70s Changes in families evident

Divorce rate doubled Women working outside the home

(60% of married women with children under 6 by 1980)

Single parent families 11% of white children and 50+% of black

were born out of wedlock by 1980

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Family-strengthening theme in Jimmy Carter’s campaign and presidency

“White House Conference on the American Family”

Two conflicts emerged Women’s autonomy Income assistance

Family Policy Debates

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The Conflict Over Women’s Autonomy Different visions of women’s roles

Women should be relatively independent of men

Should have enough earning potential to support themselves

Should have laws to protect their right to make decisions about childbearing

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Women should be dependent on menMen should earn the moneyWomen should specialize in

homemaking and raising childrenBoth should make decisions

concerning childbearing

The Conflict Over Women’s Autonomy

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Women’s Economic Independence

Breadwinner-homemaker model arose in the 1900s and continued through the 1960s

Before that time and since the 1970s, men and women have worked together to financially support the family On farms As dual-earner couples

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Women’s Economic Independence The value of the services performed

by the homemaker is recognized and might have to be acquired elsewhere, if the woman in the household works

Working men or women could purchase these services, but a homemaker dependent on husband’s money could not without consent

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Women’s Economic Independence Some advocates of breadwinner-

homemaker model believe : System is God-given or biologically

designed Male dominance and division of labor

is natural Moral worth dependent on how well

each plays his/her role Essential to democracy as a

mediating structure

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Women’s Economic Independence Until recently advocates opposed social

welfare programs Viewed as encouraging women’s economic

independence Critics of breadwinner-homemaker ask

about benefits to women Costs of this structure apparent in 1955

study Wives were twice as likely to be dissatisfied

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Women’s Economic Independence Betty Friedan (1973) popularized

argument that women lost their individuality in breadwinner-homemaker system

Challenged the idea of this family form being “natural”

Cited anthropological studies of various family forms

Concluded that defenders of breadwinner-homemaker were asking a lot of the women

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The Abortion Dilemma

Two visions of women’s roles One emphasizes mothering and

childbearing Social conservatives “Pro-Life”

One emphasizes autonomy and employment

More liberal view “Pro-Choice”

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Roe vs. Wade Legalized abortion Spurred formation of strong anti-

abortion movement Both sides claim to be defending the

family

The Abortion Dilemma

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Abortion rights vary by class Pro-life forces backed legislation to

block government funds for abortions Low-income people who rely on Medicaid

have no access Wake-up call for the pro-choice

group came in late 80s and early 90s when pro-life judges were chosen for the Supreme Court Today, it is a virtual tie

The Abortion Dilemma

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Conflict Over Income Assistance Public opinion favors assistance to

the poor that enhances independence self-reliance

Critics charged that AFDC was helping to increase numbers of single-parent families

Defenders of AFDC felt that social benefits exceeded cost

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The 1996 Welfare Reform Act AFDC and Social Security created

as entitlement programs Entitlement = program which

obligates government to provide benefits to any who qualify, regardless of program cost

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) and Family Support Act of 1998 are examples of the reluctance and controversy over the issue

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PRWORA = Government no longer guaranteed to assist every poor, single-parent family in need emphasis on temporary assistance and getting a job

Legislation scrapped AFDC and renamed the time-limited cash assistance program Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)

The 1996 Welfare Reform Act

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The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ended entitlements Block grants were given to states to

match funds and provide for welfare benefits

If state runs out, people have to wait until next year

Maximum of 5 years participation allowed

The 1996 Welfare Reform Act

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What Caused Sweeping Reform? Attitudes towards women’s roles

Acceptable for women to work Since others were out working, those on

welfare should be too Characteristics of recipients

Not widowed, but rather, single mothers Divorced or never married

Deserving vs. undeserving poor Hand-up vs. hand-out Racial composition had changed

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What Caused Sweeping Reform? Concerns about dependency

Poor had become too dependent Not encouraged to take a job or get

off of welfare Children who grow up in this

environment might be prone to cycle of dependency

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Toward a Consensus on Family Policy? Conservatives beat the drum to

the tune of: “The government should not interfere or intrude into family life.”

Liberals beat the drum to the tune of: “The government should help families solve their problems.”

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The Conservative Viewpoint

Women stay home, marry men who provide

Oppose subsidies Welfare is too high

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The Liberal Viewpoint

Women work outside home Support subsidies for out-of-home

care for children Support abortion Welfare not enough to support the

poor

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A Practical Compromise Pragmatic consensus Family Support Act includes

Earned Income Tax Credit Provides a refundable tax credit to

low-income families in which at least one parent is employed

Even if no taxes are due, they will still receive a check for the value of the credit, if they file a return