At least we used to be.

For a long time, the US was a country defined by individuals with initiative. The work ethic was something that was passed from generation to generation. Personal responsibility was a virtue. Hell, we even used to put people in prison for accumulating debt.

You didn't look to government for help. You turned toward your community, your church, and most importantly your family.

You may prefer to live in a country were income equality and buffering life’s risks are valued more than rewarding individual accomplishment and preparedness. I’d rather not.

A brief summery of Social Services.

Prior to 1850
Family and church based “relief”

1850’s and 1860’s
State and Federal governments establish some services – examples
Federal: Freedman’s Bureau services for newly emancipated slaves
States: mental asylums, poor houses and orphanages

1870’s
Major depression lasting most of the decade
Two responses:
Government response was direct relief to moderate the depression’s severity
Charity workers’ response was that direct relief would lead to the moral demise of the poor by encouraging dependency – “treating” personal deficiencies would be the answer

1890’s
Increased recognition of the need to look at all causes of poverty, not just personal deficiencies
Settlement House movement begins – focus more on the causes of poverty than the flaws of the poor

1900 – 1917
The “Progressive Era”
Federal government focus on women’s and children’s issues
The Children’s Bureau
Maternal and Infant Health Services

1920 – 1929
“The Rise of the Professionals”
States took over many of the services previously performed by private charities
Community Chests (forerunner of United Ways) start to do fundraising for private charities

1929 – 1940
The Great Depression and The New Deal
The Depression threw many people into poverty even though they were willing and able to work
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal created many new social programs
Civilian Conservation Corps – public service work for young men
Works Progress Administration – employed more than 8 million people in civic construction projects and artistic endeavors
Social Security Act – offered working people some guarantees against economic and social programs beyond their individual control – benefits for the elderly and the disabled.

1940’s
In the early part of the decade, most of the nation’s energy was devoted to World War II
Women in the work force was a major social change

1950’s
Basically a conservative decade without much attention to social issues

1960’s
John F. Kennedy’s New Frontier expressed social idealism, but not a lot accomplished
Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society and War On Poverty
Economic Opportunity Act included: Job Corps; Vista; Community Action Programs; Head Start; legal services for the poor; Foster Grandparents
Other Social Programs: Department of Housing and Urban Development; Medicaid; Food Stamps
Older Americans Act: Created the Administration on Aging and authorized grants to States for community planning and services programs, as well as for research, demonstration and training projects in the field of aging

1970’s
Few new social programs

1980’s
Ronald Reagan and the rise of the New Right – favored limits on government welfare programs – change is the responsibility of individuals and businesses

1988 – 1992
George Bush saw change as the responsibility of individuals and businesses – strongly encouraged volunteerism – “thousand points of light”
Americans with Disabilities Act

1990’s
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) replaces Aid to Families with Dependent Children Program (AFDC). This was a major change in the welfare system, specifically by making assistance time limited and enforcing work or training requirements for recipients.

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 which took effect July 26, 1992, prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment.

2000’s
Older Americans Act Amendments: The reauthorized Act contains an important new program, the National Family Caregiver Support Program, which will help hundreds of thousands of family members who are struggling to care for their older loved ones who are ill or who have disabilities. The Act was also extended through FY 2005