LibGuides: MSW-6002 V1: Week 3 Resources

Week 3 Required Resources

The True Story Behind the ‘Welfare Queen’ Stereotype
PBS News. (2019, June 1). The true story behind the ‘welfare queen’ stereotype [Video]. PBS.org.
This video contains an interview with Josh Levin author of the ‘The Queen.’ This book discusses how the stereotype of the welfare queen was used to stigmatize poor women (primarily minority women) who received welfare benefits for decades. The author discusses how the image of the ‘welfare queen’ was built on the image of a single women who politicians used as a example of welfare fraud, although this was far from the truth.
Moynihan Black Poverty Report Revisited 50 Years Later
Grigsby Bates, K. (2013, June 13). Moynihan black poverty report revisited 50 years later [Radio broadcast]. National Public Radio.
In 1962 then New York Senator Patrick Moynihan published a report titled ‘The Negro Family: The case for national action.’ Viewing this report through our current lens of social justice this report was and is problematic. At the time, Senator Moynihan, who was always an advocate for the those in poverty and the underserved, saw minority populations following behind compared to their White couterparts. This brief article examines the Moynihan report 50 years later and highlights someone of the ways social workers contributed to and participated in the Draconian welfare laws of this era.
Confronting Poverty: Facts and Myths
Krank, M. (2024). Facts and myths. Confronting Poverty.
This resource provides facts and statistics which address the myths and stigmas associated with people who live in poverty. Myths addressed in this resource include the inevitability of poverty, the true demographics of poverty, and what poverty look like in the United States.
Challenging The Bootstrap Myth
Valdés, A. (2016, February 3). Challenging the bootstrap myth [Video]. YouTube.
In this Tedx Talk, Antonio Valdés, CEO of the Children’s Crisis Treatment Center and social worker) discusses Adverse Childhood Events (ACE’s) which create additional barriers for those who have experienced trauma to rise out of poverty. Mr. Valdés reorients the blame from the individual to the need for ‘protective factors’ which support children in overcoming early adversity.