Examining the federal policy of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families requires considering how TANF works for children who are in poverty because, in order to critically analyze the social policy, it is necessary to examine how it functions and why it is implemented. I think that this, ideologically, is a misstep because children should not be punished for the inability of the government to keep its own program in check. The ideas that drove the programs changes (that were brought into place as TANF) were put in place because of stereotypes that recipients of welfare were doing it instead of looking for a job or because it was easier than working.
Culturally, this is negative and hurtful. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., in his letter from Birmingham jail, talked of "obnoxious negative peace" and I believe that acquiescing to the cultural stereotypes and biases that propelled that change were that negative placidity that actually leads to further conflict.
[...] Social welfare policies have shifted from benefit-based programs to work-based initiatives because public opinion still feels that the solution for poverty is for people to go out and work. Yet, in mainstream culture, the problem is not clearly defined because many in society want to look the other way and are more concerned about their own wallets and pocketbooks than they are the suffering around them. To face the possibility of structural barriers and problem-centered would help prevent blaming the victims, but this approach has often proved unsuccessful in the United States. [...]
[...] The aim and goal of this social program is to use an array of standards to determine financial eligibility and decide whether needy families get assistance or not and then assist the neediest families. Current income has to be below a certain figure and assets are also taken into account. The program is designed to help the families of children who are in poverty get through short-term hardship with fewer difficulties than they would if they were not given help. [...]
[...] Informed consent, parental permission, and assent in pediatric practice. Pediatrics 314-317. Cushman, P. (1995) Constructing the Self, Constructing America: A Cultural History of Psychotherapy, Perseus Publishing: New York. Lens, V. (2002). TANF: What Went Wrong and What to Do Next. Social Work, 279+. Retrieved November from Questia database: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000808608 Rose, N. E. (2000). Scapegoating Poor Women: An Analysis of Welfare Reform. Journal of Economic Issues, 34(1) Retrieved November from Questia database: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5001210077 Rowe, G., & Giannarelli, L. (2002). TANF Benefits in a Sagging Economy. [...]
[...] Poor people, black or white, should not be forced to try to act like they are responsible for their own problems when we live in a world that is going to create poverty every time, for someone, because of the disparity of wealth. This a war that needs to be fought. Without it, there will never be real peace. TANF is a process that hides behind racism and then doles out a few cookies to children This is why Dr. [...]
[...] This is the ethical and moral framework that is missing from the program as it currently stands because "Getting families off welfare and into the work force has done little to lift the poorest children out of poverty" (Sherman p. 68). This, therefore, makes it even harder to see or declare concrete action steps that can possibly avoid that there are "deeply held enabling myths that perpetuate stereotypes of welfare recipients and results in mean- spirited policies that lead to deeper poverty for poor women and children." (Rose p. [...]
APA Style reference
For your bibliographyOnline reading
with our online readerContent validated
by our reading committee
