by Andrew Dusek
This month marks 50 years since President Lyndon B. Johnson declared an unprecedented war on poverty in his first State of the Union Address. The war on poverty—characterized by the array of social welfare programs Johnson signed into law—has met with mixed reviews from historians, politicians and the general public alike.
It is important to use the anniversary of Johnson’s pivotal declaration to reflect on how much progress has been made combating poverty in the past 50 years. To be sure, progress has been made: few Americans currently lack electricity or indoor plumbing. Infant mortality rates and the number of children who contract diseases such as measles have significantly decreased while college graduation rates and the number of women in the workforce have increased.[i]
Despite notable advancements, however, the state of the labor market for low-wage workers remains poor and spiraling inequality keeps the poverty rate in America persistently high. The poverty rate has fallen only to 15 percent from 19 percent in two generations[ii], and approximately 46 million Americans live below the poverty line.[iii] The approaches to combating poverty that were successful in the 1960s cannot be easily applied to challenges today. At the time President Johnson launched his crusade, economic growth was viewed as the rising tide that would lift all boats. Although it is true that economic growth lifted many people out of poverty at the time, the benefits of economic growth were more broadly distributed. Most of the gains from economic growth in 2014 benefit the few at the top of the income ladder, which only exacerbates the growing wealth gap that President Obama has called the “defining challenge of our time.”
Great strides have been made in combating global poverty, but more has to be done. Although 721 million fewer people live in extreme poverty in the world today than 30 years ago, approximately 1.2 billion people remained trapped in destitution as of 2010.[iv] Ending extreme poverty, which is defined as reducing the percentage of people living with less than $1.25 a day to no more than 3 percent globally by 2030, requires identifying opportunity and promoting shared prosperity.[v] Instead, too many people are living in dire straights as the international community struggles to find a solution.
Despite the hardships faced by millions in the U.S., the country is in a position to take the lead in combating global poverty. Action is needed on a host of issues, from ending tax avoidance and promoting financial transparency to improving access to health and education by ensuring that developing countries are able to retain revenue and grow their economies. In the global south, equity-oriented policies can lead to sustained growth and achieve the World Bank’s twinned goals of eradicating poverty and boosting prosperity for the bottom 40 percent of society by 2030.[vi] It is important to remember President Johnson’s exact words as we affirm our commitment to combating poverty and creating prosperity, not just in America, but wherever poverty exists:
“Unfortunately, many Americans live on the outskirts of hope – some because of their poverty, and some because of their color, and all too many because of both. Our task is to help replace their despair with opportunity. It will not be a short or easy struggle, no single weapon or strategy will suffice, but we shall not rest until that war is won. The richest Nation on earth can afford to win it. We cannot afford to lose it.”
- President Lyndon B. Johnson, January 8, 1964
[i] Liasson, Mara, “50 Years Later How the Politics of Poverty Have Evolved,” National Public Radio, http://www.npr.org/2014/01/09/260979911/middle-class-worries-about-falling-into-poverty
Lowrey, Annie. “50 Years Later, War on Poverty Is Mixed Bag.” New York Times. January 4, 2014. Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/05/business/50-years-later-war-on-poverty-is-a-mixed-bag.html?smid=fb-nytimes&WT.z_sma=BU_5YL_20140106&bicmp=AD&bicmlukp=WT.mc_id&bicmst=1388552400000&bicmet=1420088400000&_r=2 [accessed January 15, 2014].
[ii] Lowrey, NY Times
[iii] Kurtzleben, Danielle. “50 Years Later, A War Over the Poverty Rate.” U.S. News and World Report. January 6, 2014. available at http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/01/06/50-years-later-a-war-over-the-poverty-rate [accessed January 15, 2014].
[iv] The World Bank. “The State of the Poor: Where Are The Poor, Where Is Extreme Poverty Harder to End, and What Is the Current Profile of the World’s Poor?” Olinto, Beegle, Sobrado, and Uematsu. available at http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2013/10/11/000333037_20131011145101/Rendered/PDF/818010BRI0EP120Box0379844B00PUBLIC0.pdf [accessed January 15, 2014].
[v] The World Bank. “Inequality in Focus, October 2013: Analyzing the World Bank’s Goal of Achieving “Shared Prosperity.” October 2013. available at http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/publication/inequality-in-focus-october-2013 [accessed January 15, 2014].
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