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The Background of U.S. Welfare State
Ancient CivilizationsAncient Civilizations Babylon: protection of widows and orphans
Buddhism: love and charity
Aristotle “more blessed to give than receive”
Cicero “mercy on all”
Greeks and Romans helped crippled, needy, orphans of war
Druids and ancient Celts & Gauls cared for needy, orphans of illness and war
Duty of giving (tzedakah)
Right, actually a duty, to receive
Sense of justice
Jewish lawJewish law
Held to Jewish tradition
Charity important
Need is a result of misfortune; those who can help must do so, those who need have a right to receive
Monasteries and hospitals sources of aid
Bishop must protect the poor
ChristianityChristianity
MoralityMorality All major religions thru history have contained
some sort of charity or service in their basic belief structure
Social work is, by its nature, a moral vocation.
Public policy is made up of collective decisions that are made. Although we are an EXTREMELY diverse nation, we are able to agree on some things.
These decisions are based in histories: our religious traditions, our family traditions, our national traditions, etc.
Feudal European Feudal European SocietySociety
Everyone had an assigned place in a stable community
Serfs under protection of lords
Guilds in cities helped members and others
Church helped sick and dependent
Relief given to community members in unusual cases of accident, calamity, etc.
Conditions Leading to Conditions Leading to Poor LawsPoor Laws
Breakup of feudal system
Enclosure (for sheep) resulted in persons with no land to farm
Black Death 1348-49
Protestant reformation and dissolution of English monasteries in 1536
Results of Social Results of Social UpheavalsUpheavals
Huge increases in unemployment, poverty, vagabondage, begging, thievery
Rise of towns and cities
Population movement & labor shortages in some areas as landless moved from place to place
Statute of Laborers Statute of Laborers 13491349
Unemployed had to work where they lived for anyone who would hire them at the wages fixed by law
No moving around for better work (or spreading the plague)
No charity to be given to able bodied persons
Principles Underlying Principles Underlying English Poor LawsEnglish Poor Laws
Punitive measures alone would not solve problems
Poverty was an economic not personal matter
Recognized involuntary unemployment
State should help those who could not help themselves
Relief should be locally administered and financed
Major Features of Major Features of 1601 Poor Law1601 Poor Law
Relatives first source of help
Vagrants could be punished
Needy people had legal right to help by local government
3 categories of dependents: children, able-bodied, impotent
Taxes raised to help the poor