Is Work the Only Thing that Pays? The Guaranteed Income and Other Alternative Anti-Poverty Policies in Historical Perspective

This paper examines the historical alternatives to welfare reform, namely the guaranteed income. This is, in a sense, the simplest possible approach to poverty, in that it proposes that each adult citizen receive a basic adequate income from a combination of market and state resources; if someone is not earning a wage, then she or he receives substantial support from the government and, in the case of a low wage, receives a smaller supplemental grant. The paper explores the meaning and history of the idea of a minimum income for all U.S. Citizens and argues that it was an object of serious discussion by intellectuals, advocates, and government officials during the Johnson and Nixon years. It also explores the reasons for its emergence, and both the strengths and weaknesses of the idea as it came into being. The article concludes the most successful solution to the problem of poverty in the early twenty-first century is likely to be a combination of making work pay, a family-based strategy, and a functioning support system of basic income for those who earn very little or nothing

Is Work the Only Thing that Pays? The Guaranteed Income and Other Alternative Anti-Poverty Policies in Historical Perspective

This paper examines the historical alternatives to welfare reform, namely the guaranteed income. This is, in a sense, the simplest possible approach to poverty, in that it proposes that each adult citizen receive a basic adequate income from a combination of market and state resources; if someone is not earning a wage, then she or he receives substantial support from the government and, in the case of a low wage, receives a smaller supplemental grant. The paper explores the meaning and history of the idea of a minimum income for all U.S. Citizens and argues that it was an object of serious discussion by intellectuals, advocates, and government officials during the Johnson and Nixon years. It also explores the reasons for its emergence, and both the strengths and weaknesses of the idea as it came into being. The article concludes the most successful solution to the problem of poverty in the early twenty-first century is likely to be a combination of making work pay, a family-based strategy, and a functioning support system of basic income for those who earn very little or nothing

The Poverty Law Education of Charles Reich

This essay, written for a symposium on the life and legacy of Charles Reich, explores how Reich came to be interested in the field of poverty law and, specifically, the constitutional rights of welfare recipients. The essay emphasizes the influence of two older women in Reich’s life: Justine Wise Polier, the famous New York City family court judge and the mother of one of Reich’s childhood friends, and Elizabeth Wickenden, a contemporary of Polier’s who was a prominent voice in social welfare policymaking and a confidante of high-level federal social welfare administrators. Together, Polier and Wickenden helped educate Reich about the facts on the ground, including potential constitutional violations, and encouraged him to write about these issues. Subsequently, they used their powerful networks to circulate Reich’s writings and amplify his arguments. This history showcases Reich’s deep connections to left-liberal reformers who came of age during the New Deal: although he famously critiqued some of their handiwork, he relied heavily on their ideas, expertise, and good will