Religion and the War on Poverty Notes

Religion and the War on Poverty

Shriver's Address to the United Presbyterian Church

In May 1965, Sargent Shriver addressed the General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church, emphasizing the moral imperative of the war on poverty.

  • Shriver viewed the National Council of Churches (NCC) and its affiliates as crucial allies.
  • He believed churches and synagogues were integral to the success of anti-poverty initiatives.
  • Quoting the Presbyterian standing committee report, Shriver stated, "When a nation fights for its soul, who but the church should set the context for that struggle?"

Overview of Anti-Poverty Efforts

This section explores the involvement of religious organizations in the war on poverty during the 1960s.

  • It examines the theological and moral foundations of anti-poverty work undertaken by religious entities.
  • It analyzes how these principles were applied in both governmental and religious anti-poverty programs.
  • The analysis traces the evolving relationship between religious and government bodies involved in the war on poverty.

Evolution and Interpretation of the War on Poverty

The discussion covers the establishment, growth, and eventual fragmentation of an ecumenical anti-poverty coalition.

  • The war on poverty extends into the 21st century, evidenced by debates in 2024.
  • The Council of Economic Advisors and the House of Representatives Budget Committee offered contrasting evaluations 50 years after its inception.
  • Both Democrats and Republicans acknowledge the significance of the war on poverty, albeit with differing perspectives.
  • The GOP released a second report on poverty, opportunity, and upward mobility as part of Paul Ryan's "A Better Way" initiative.
  • The Council of Economic Advisors asserted the war on poverty's success and advocated for its continuation and expansion.
  • The Republican perspective, however, argued that federal policies, excluding the earned income tax credit and tax cuts, have largely contributed to ongoing poverty.

The Moynihan Report and Divergent Perspectives

Paul Ryan's budget committee report referenced Daniel Patrick Moynihan's "The Negro Family" (1965) to support the claim that family structure is the most significant determinant of poverty.

  • Republicans use the Moynihan Report to argue that anti-poverty policies cause poverty.
  • Liberals interpret the report as highlighting black male unemployment as a fundamental issue.
  • The Moynihan Report and the war on poverty remain central to debates on racial and economic inequality.
  • Different poverty measures are used; Republicans favor the official poverty measure, while Democrats use the supplemental poverty measure.
  • The supplemental poverty measure includes post-tax, post-transfer metrics, such as cash and in-kind transfers (SNAP, housing vouchers), and deducts expenses like childcare and medical costs.
  • The supplemental poverty measure shows a more significant poverty reduction (26 to 16%) compared to the official measure (17 to 15%).

Definition and Significance of the War on Poverty

The war on poverty is defined as the programs, policies, and agencies initiated and funded by the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) and its successors.

  • Both parties agree on the fundamental significance and ongoing nature of the war on poverty.
  • It is argued that an anti-poverty coalition of government agencies, community groups, and ecumenical religious organizations, formed in the 1960s, continues to operate today.

Recent Scholarship on the War on Poverty

Recent scholarship has highlighted the war on poverty, with Tom Kiffner's article in the June 2015 issue of Reviews in American History providing a thorough review.

  • Historical scholarship has flourished, challenging previous interpretations related to race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation.
  • Studies have explored connections between the war on poverty and social movements, including the African American and Mexican American civil rights movements, the Chicano and black power movements, and feminism.
  • Scholars have expanded the perceived timeframe of the war on poverty, arguing it extends beyond the 1970s.
  • The term "long war on poverty" is used to describe anti-poverty efforts continuing beyond the 1970s.

Challenging the Success-Failure Paradigm

Early works, including those by Daniel Moynihan and Charles Murray, often portrayed the war on poverty as a failure.

  • Annelise Orleck's "Storming Caesar's Palace" challenged this paradigm by emphasizing grassroots activism, particularly by women of color, and linking it to feminism and civil rights.
  • Orleck's work highlights the central role of black women and demonstrates the war on poverty's extended duration.
  • Subsequent works have further demonstrated a long war on poverty and intricate connections to social movements like civil rights, black power, the Chicano movement, feminism, and gay rights.
  • These works collectively demonstrate how Native American, Black, Chicano, and feminist activists shaped the war on poverty in their communities.

The Role of Religion in the War on Poverty

Despite historical scholarship, the central role of religion in the war on poverty has been underexplored.

  • Historians like Betty Collier Thomas and Judith Weisenfeld have highlighted black women's religion-based social activism.
  • Scholars such as James Findlay and David Chappell have explored religion's fundamental role in the civil rights movement.
  • John McGreevey has examined the complex relationship between Catholicism and the black freedom movement.
  • Thomas Suguru notes the lack of incorporation of Catholicism into national narratives due to historians' blindness to lived religion and the internalist orientation of Catholic history scholars.
  • Catholic anti-poverty activists are included in conjunction with Protestant and Jewish organizations.

Examples of Religious Involvement

The vital role of religious organizations and agencies in the war on poverty has largely remained unexamined.

  • Kenneth Hymans's article on Catholic Social Activism and the War on Poverty in Pittsburgh.
  • Susan Ashmore's essay on Catholic anti-poverty efforts in Mobile, Alabama.
  • Martin Meeker's essay on the involvement of ministers and gay activists in San Francisco.
  • Wesley Phelps' book on the war on poverty in Houston.

Opposition to the War on Poverty

Opposition to the war on poverty played a role in galvanizing conservatives in the 1960s and beyond.

  • That opposition played a role in Ronald Reagan's election in the 1980s and remains central to conservatism.
  • Paul Ryan's "A Better Way" initiative uses Ronald Reagan's quote, "We fought a war on poverty, and poverty won."

Focus on the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO)

This project explores the role religion played in the war on poverty.

  • The Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO) highlights ecumenism among religious organizations and the significance of black power.
  • James Foreman's Black Manifesto (1969) challenged churches and synagogues to donate resources to IFCO as reparations for slavery and racial segregation.
  • The manifesto linked black power and the war on poverty, reshaping ecumenical anti-poverty efforts.
  • The work explores the connections between religious organizations, social movements, and community anti-poverty agencies, expanding the argument for a long war on poverty.

Origins of the War on Poverty

America's war on poverty officially began with the Economic Opportunity Act (EOA) signed on August 20, 1964.

  • The war on poverty emerged from concerns over juvenile delinquency in the 1950s and early 1960s.
  • University of Chicago sociologists Robert Park and Ernest Burgess linked delinquency to the failure of community organizations.
  • Columbia University sociologists Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin argued that blocked opportunities for inner-city youth caused juvenile delinquency.
  • President John F. Kennedy created the President's Committee on Juvenile Delinquency.
  • Kennedy was influenced by Walter Heller, who thought tax cuts would not do enough to help the poor as well as Michael Harrington's "The Other America"(1962).
  • Dwight Macdonald, in the New Yorker, published in early 1963, both of which highlighted the persistence of poverty in America and both of which Kennedy read.
  • The anti poverty efforts were still evolving when Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963.

The Economic Opportunity Act (EOA)

President Lyndon B. Johnson established a new task force, leading to the EOA and the creation of the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO).

  • The EOA incorporated programs like Head Start, Upward Bound, and Legal Services.
  • Federal funds were provided to Community Action Agencies (CAAs) for local anti-poverty efforts.
  • Johnson appointed Sargent Shriver to lead the war on poverty.
  • Shriver's religious devotion was important for incorporating religious organizations.

Community Action and Empowerment

Community action was the key strategy of the legislation, emphasizing the maximum feasible participation of the poor.

  • The inclusion and empowerment of poor people were controversial but key for religious social activists.
  • The OEO targeted nonprofit agencies outside traditional government entities to avoid established bureaucracies.
  • Funding community-based organizations, particularly in black and brown communities, became more typical.
  • The OEO funded organizations like the Watts Labor Community Action Committee and the Chicana Service Action Center.
  • This practice led to increased OEO funding of church and religion-based anti-poverty organizations.

Evolution and Adaptation

The war on poverty was not a static policy; it evolved to meet changing demands and challenges.

  • It adapted to requests from churches, synagogues, and religious organizations.
  • Some organizations reduced their involvement due to criticisms, while others helped reshape OEO policies.
  • A church-state anti-poverty effort and an ecumenical anti-poverty coalition evolved.
  • These efforts remain in place today through faith-based and racially distinct community organizations.
  • The focus is on Catholic and Protestant organizations that have continued their dedication, despite reduced funding and attacks from conservatives.