Poverty- Part 1: Introduction [1]

Poverty

by David A. Norris, 2006
Additional research provided by K. Todd Johnson, Jay Mazzocchi, and Wiley J. Williams.

Poverty- Part 1: Introduction

Poverty- Part 2: Public Charity in the Colonial Era through the Nineteenth Century [2]

Poverty- Part 3: Statewide Public Welfare Initiatives and the Modern Division of Social Services [3]

Part 1: Introduction

Programs and initiatives to alleviate poverty and aid the needy have been undertaken in North Carolina since colonial [4]times. In addition to private organizations and churches, government at various levels has attempted to address poverty issues, with mixed results. There is a direct correlation between poverty and poor health, reduced access to cultural and recreational opportunities, increased crime victimization, and below-average academic achievement. Even with the state's overall economic prosperity, poverty remains a persistent and disturbing feature of North Carolina's landscape, particularly in the rural Coastal Plain [5]. According to the U.S. Census Bureau [6], in 2005, 23 North Carolina counties-19 of which were located in the east-experienced poverty rates of over 18 percent. Twenty of these poorer counties had held similarly high rates since data collection began in 1960. More than half a million rural North Carolinians were living in poverty, with children and minority groups suffering disproportionately higher rates.

Keep reading >> Part 2: Public Charity in the Colonial Era through the Nineteenth Century [2] [2]

References:

A. Laurance Aydlett, "The North Carolina State Board of Public Welfare," NCHR 24 (January 1947).

Guion G. Johnson, Ante-Bellum North Carolina: A Social History (1937).

Robert S. Rankin, The Government and Administration of North Carolina (1955).

Additional Resources:

Center on Poverty, Work, and Opporunity, UNC School of Law: http://www.law.unc.edu/centers/poverty/default.aspx [7]

North Carolina Fact, U.S. Census Bureau: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/37000.html [8]

Poverty Grows, North Carolina Justice Center: http://www.ncjustice.org/?q=node/969 [9]

Subjects:

Economics [10]

Public service [11]

UNC Press [12]

Authors:

Johnson, K. Todd [13]

Mazzocchi, Jay [14]

Norris, David A. [15]

Williams, Wiley J. [16]

From:

Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press. [17]

1 January 2006 | Johnson, K. Todd; Mazzocchi, Jay; Norris, David A.; Williams, Wiley J.