The Rights of the Poor
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Description
This book was written for the poor, and for those working with them. I have tried to keep the language simple, without being simple-minded. This is always a difficult job, especially for someone with the benefit of legal training. A poor person needs concrete information to obtain the subsistence benefits to hold life together. He or she often also needs help in dealing with the system. The information which this book provides is often not very concrete, because conditions and rules vary so much from place to place, and the rules change from day to day. Help from a friend, a welfare-rights worker, a community organizer, or lawyer must be found at the local level. At best this book is just a starting place for a poor person struggling to get the things which the law guarantees. Richard Nixon’s second term of office has brought important restrictions in the rights of the poor. While Watergate captures national attention and headlines, the Department of Health, Education and Welfare quietly abolishes rights and protections which have been afforded the poor by federal regulation since the New Deal. Repression and cutbacks at the state and local levels are perhaps even more serious. There is disturbing irony in the commercial publication and sale of a book for the poor. If this is to be of any use to the people for whom it is intended, it will be because more affluent people and organizations buy copies and make them available without charge to poor people. . . . Who are the poor in America? Most Americans are poor at one time or another during their lives. Many Americans are poor all of their lives. The United States Department of Labor estimated that in 1970 an urban family of four needs $10,664 to live at a moderate level. At the same time the mean income of black men was $6,773, of white women it was $5,965, and of black women it was $4,943. Thus most American families are officially poor. If you are a woman, or old, or black, the likelihood of being poor is even greater. Poor people are the real majority. What special rights do poor people have? Poor people have the right to receive welfare, free medical care, food stamps, and free or low-cost school lunches. These rights are discussed in this book. In addition, poor people have rights to: public housing, free legal services; go to court without paying court fees in some cases; day care and other social services; unemployment compensation; tuition reductions or scholarships; school breakfasts; and special food programs for the elderly. These rights are not discussed in this book because there is not enough space to talk about all of the rights of all of the poor. Are these legal rights? Yes. All the rights discussed in this book are legal rights. If the department of welfare fails to give you the benefits to which you are entitled, within the required time limits, they are breaking the law. Welfare, free medical care, food stamps, and free school lunches are not charity. They are the legal rights of people who meet the qualifications for them. Every American has the right to fair treatment from the government. You have the right to apply for any benefit, to be informed of the law and be treated in accordance with the written rules and regulations governing the administration of benefits, and to appeal any unfavorable decision made by the administrators. How can people get their rights? There are several organizations throughout the country that help poor people get their rights. The most important of these are organizations made up of poor people themselves. These welfare rights and tenant organizations provide information, help people apply for aid, refer them to lawyers, and put people with similar problems in touch with one another. . . .
Publication Date
1973
Recommended Citation
Law, Sylvia A. and Neuborne, Burt, "The Rights of the Poor" (1973). Faculty Books & Edited Works. 441.
https://gretchen.law.nyu.edu/fac-books-edited-works/441
