Review

Author(s): Douglas S. Massey, Bonnie Thornton Dill and Sara S. McLanahan

Review by: Douglas S. Massey, Bonnie Thornton Dill and Sara S. McLanahan
Source: Contemporary Sociology, Vol. 26, No. 4 (Jul., 1997), pp. 416-422
Published by: American Sociological Association
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2655076
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4r16 Featured Essays

DOUGLASS. MASSEY
University of Pennsylvania

WhenWorkDisappears is the follow-up to WhenWorkDisappears: TheWorldofthelVew

o

William Julius Wilson'swidely discussed and UrbanPoor, byWiRiamJuliusWilsoll. New

hugelyinfluential1987 book, The Truly York:AlfredA. Kllopf,1996. 322 pp. 826.00
Disadvantaged. The latterwas written as a cloth.IS13N:0-594-57955-6.
liberalcounterweight to conservative views
thenholding swayinnational policydebates.
It arguedthaturbanblackpoverty did not TheUrbanPoverty anclFamily LifeStucly
stemfrom a misguided welfare system ora lack hasbeenrather a disappointn[lent. Despitethe
of initiativeamongthe poor,but froma investment of hundredsof tllousanclsof
transformation ofthe urbaneconomythat research dollars, fewstudiesusingtheUPFL
eliminatedhigh-paying jobsforthemodestlydatahaveappeared inrefereed socialscience
redisttibuted
skilled, employment from cities journals(I knowofnoneinmajorjotlrnals of
tosuburbs,andintheprocess created a spatial sociology), and theclatahavegenerally not
andskills"mismatch" thatincreased therate beenusedbyresearchers outsicletheproject.
ofjoblessnessamongblackmen,underminedThe UPFL has simplynot affectecl social
theeconomic foundations oftheblackfamily,sciencein a mannercomIllensurate withits
and broughtabout a proliferationof sizeandscope,providing scholars neitherwith
nomnaritalchildbearing among blackwomen. newdatasets norsignificant research results.
Wilsonidentified growing socialisolation in ManyhopedthatWilson's newbookwould
theghetto as a principalcauseofpoverty and fillthevoidofresearch anclclataeInanating
itsperpetuation amongAfrican Americans. fromthe UPFL, but again theywill be
TheTruly Disadvantaged offered manybold disappointed. WhenWorkDisappearsnlakes
hypotheses butlittlein thewayofempiricalsparinguse of UPFL clatain a clecicleclly
analysis.The datathatWilsonmarshaled in nonanalytic way.Tabulations ofsurvey results
support ofhisviewsweremainly abstractedare presentedto illustratepoints, ancl
frompublishedcensus reportsand were quotations from theethnographies areofferecl
rather
illustrative thananalytic. Withsimple to buttress arguments, butfortheInostpart
tabulationshe documentedthe growing UPFLdataarenotdeployed to test
critically
geographicconcentration ofpoverty andrising explanations orevaluate theories. Wilsoncloes
inChicago's
joblessness blackneighborhoocls, noteven makefulluse of the substantial
butdidnotattempt toestablish thesetrends research literature thataccuIllulated in the
nationallyor quantify theirinfluenceon wakeofTheTrlxly Disadvantaged.The fielclstill
individualbehavior. In thewakeofWilson's awaitsa definitive assessment oftheories he
book,however,a smallresearchindustryadvanceda decadeago.
arose,andbythemid-1990s a sizableliterature The shortcomings ofWhen WorkDisappec7es
hadaccumulated withrespect tomanyofhis as a workofsocialsciencestempartly frozIl
its
claims. conflicted nature, forinitWilson simultaneously
At thetimethatWilsonwasworking on seeksto makecontributions as a researcher,
TheTruly Disadvantged hewasalsolaunching theorist, andpolicyanalystcoinpeting goals
The UrbanPoverty andFamily LifeStudy, a thatwouldgiveanyone trouble.Evenjuclgecl as
comprehensive researchprojectexplicitly a treatise on socialpolicy, however, thebook
designedto testhis ideas.Withgenerous founders onWilson's reluctance toengagethe
supportfrom leadingfunding agencies, Wilson issueofrace.Wilsonpointeclly favorsclass
systematically gathereddata fromblacks, specific overrace-specific policies,despitehis
whites, and Hispanics living in poor ownpresentation ofUPFLdatashowing that
neighborhoods ofChicagousinga clesign that racematters, hiks
acknowleclgment ofnuIllerous
pairedrepresentative survey sampling with racistprocessesin Americanlifesanclhis
targetedethnographies. Although thesedata acceptanceof theoriesthatpointto the
wereunavailablein 1987,socialscientists continuing importance of race as a factor
eagerlyawaitedWilson'snextvolume, when perpetuating blackpovcrty.
thenewinformation couldbeapplieddirectly The bestandmostoriginal chapterinthe
totesthistheories. book is entitled "The Meaning ancl

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 Featured Essays 4r17

Significance ofRace: Enlployers and Inner- in whichotherchangesin societyhave

CityWorkers," whichpresents qualitative interacted withsegregation to producethe
data froman in-depth survey ofemployersdramatic socialtransformation ofinner-city
conductedthrough theUPFL project.The neighborhoods." Myaddeclitalicsrevealthe
responses reveala well-established anddeep- Wilsonian approach tosocialpolicy:Accept
seateclprejudiceagainstblack workers, thestatusquo of blacksegregation while
particularlyInales, tlaat is freelyancl working to implement class-specific
policies
unashameclly expressed. The chapter, richly toimprove blackeconomic welfare.
documented witlldirect quotations, showsthe Inthelastchapter, Wilsonoutlines hisown
subtleand non-so-subtle meansbywhich proposalsto remedy urbanpoverty: higher
employers excludeblackworkers from their nationaleducational standarcls;
betterteacher
laborpoolsandavoidhiring themwhenthey development; moreschoolfunding; state-
appear.The chapter titlesaysit all; No one sponsoredchildcare anclparentalleave;
canmisstheallusion toWilson's TheDeclining universal healthcare; newpartnerships to
Significance ofRace,thebookthatfirst made improvethe school-to-work transition;
himfamous. Baseclonnewdata,Wilsonfinds metropolitan-wide governments; anexpanded
nowthatraceis significant, andthatitdoes earnedincome taxcredit;jobinfornlationand
have meaningin constraining the livesof placement centers; ancla publicemployment
African Americans. program mocleledon the WorksProgress
The book also contains nuInerous AdIninistration ofthe1930s.
acknowledgments ofthemanifolcl waysthat I havenoquarrel witla
anyoftlaeseproposals.
racialprejudice anclcliscrimination continue to I onlyargue thatsuchclass-specific
actionsmust
undennine blackwell-being intheUnited States. be accompanied byrace-specificremedies to
Hereisa sampling: "inaddition toenduring the combat discrimination andexpand opportunities
search-and-travel costs,inner-cityblackworkersfor African Americans. Notingwhitediscomfort
oftenconfront racialharassment whenthey withrace-based policies,
however,Wilsonshies
entersuburban communities " (p. 41); "the awayfrom suchprograms. Presumably atsome
federal government contributed to theearly future date,after theeconomic statusofAfrican
decay of inner-cityneighborhoocls by Americans hasimproved, policymakers canturn
withholding mortgage capital"(p. 46); "black theirattention tosegregation andotherracial
communities wereuprooted byurbanrenewal issues.
andforced migration" (p.47); "public housing Thereis a fatalflawin thisreasoning,
represents a federally funded institution thathas however. ThatdaywillnevercoInebecause
isolated faInilies byraceandclassfordecades" attempts to ilnprove theeconon-lic statusof
(p.48); "many leInployers] consider inner-city poorAfrican Americans willbe undoneby
workersespecially young blackmales tobe othermechanisms ofdisadvantage operating
uneducated,unstableuncooperative, and alongraciallines.Papering overtheissueof
dishonest" and"racialstereotyping is greater race in public policy is ultimatelyself-
amongemployers withlowerproportions of defeating. Ifanyprogram disproportionately
blacksintheir workforce" (p. 111). benefitsAfricanAmericans,it will be
Thus,Wilsonreadily acknowledges racism vulnerable to political attack froIrl
as a potentforcein American life.He also conservatives whocan workassiduously to
acceptsInyowntheoretical argument thatthe labelit a "black"prograIn. AFDC wasrace-
transformation ofthe urbaneconomywas neutralanclbased on universaleconomic
uniquely detrizzleIltal to African Americans criteria, butpublicdisapproval was aroused
becauseit interacted powerfully withracial through the racializecl imagery of "welfare
segregation togenerate extreme concentrations queens.'whichinthepublicInindrefers only
of poverty thatexposedpoorblacksto an toblackunwedmothers whohavesuccessive
unusually harshandremarkably disaclvantaged childrenin orderto collectmorewelfare
socialenviroIunent. Whereas I callforvigorouspayments. As shownbytheuse oftheterm
measures toconlbat discriIn1nation inhousing,"quota queen" to sink Lani Guinieris
lending, and labormarkets, however, Wilson nomination forattorney general,"clueen"isa
seeksto avoidrace-based socialpolicies.His stigmatizing label appliedonlyto African
viewissuccinctly revealecl onpage16:"given «e American womento clelegitimize themand
existence oJ segregation, weInust consider theway allpoliciesassociatecl withtheIn.

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4r18Featured Essays

Wilsoncannotsimply avoidtheissueof He is clearlypreparedto promoteclass-

racebyrelegating ittothebackground. Ifrace based remediesthatare unrealistic under
isa fundamentalcleavageinAmerican lifeand currentpoliticalconditions.Indeed, he
weaponagainst
a latent anyprogram intended makesa virtueofpoliticalunrealism when
toimprove thewelfare ofthepooringeneral itcomesto class:"I . . . do notadvancepro-
andtheblackpoorinparticular, thensocial posals thatseem acceptableor 'realistic'
analystsignoreit at theirperil.All thatit giventhecurrent politicalclimate.Rather,
wouldtaketosinka newWPAprogram would I havechosento talkaboutwhatought tobe
be someskillfully packagedfootage ofblack donetoaddress theproblemsofsocialinequality"
menleaning onshovels smokingcigarettes for (p. 209,italicsin original).Givenhisown
theprogram as a "black" data on employer
to be stigmatized prejudices,his frequent
giveaway.Paperingoverthe issueof race acknowledgment ofthe continuing effects
makesforbadsocialtheory, badresearch, and of racism,and his intellectual acceptance
badpublicpolicy. ofsegregation's rolein perpetuating black
In the end,Wilson'sdecisionto abjure poverty, whycan'tWilsondisplaythesame
race-based policiesinorderto avoidpoliti- boldnessandhonesty on theissueofrace?
cal opposition strikesme as disingenuous.

DILL
BONNIETHORNTON
UniversityofMaryland, College Park

In 1965,whenDaniel PatrickMoynihan's environment in shaping thelifeexperiences

report TheNegro Family: TheCaseforNationalof inner-city ghettoresidents"(p. xv), in
Action waspublished bytheU.S. Departmentresponse bothtothereemergence ofgenetic
ofLabor,itsmessage abouttheimportance of explanations ofraceandclassdifferences and
jobsforBlackmenwaslargely overlooked in to arguments thatfocuson Blackstrengths
the controversy surrounding Moynihan's butminimize "theconsequencesof racial
analysis ofthedeteriorating Blackfamily as isolation andeconomic classsubordination (p.
theprimary causeofthegrowth ofpoverty.XVll) .
. . \

Although WilliamJuliusWilsondealswith It is important to readthe introduction

someof thesamethemes povertwr, family carefully becauseit is keyto understanding
dissolution, crime,pooreducation, welfare,Wilson'sanalytical strategyand,ultimately,
and racism in his newbook,WhenWork toevaluating itssuccess.Onemight arguethat
Disappears, he makesitquiteclearthatwork, thetaskhesetouttoaccomplish, presenting
and thelackthereof, has a profound causal a complexsocial analysisto botha social
effectonallofthesesocialissues.InWilson's scientific anda generalaudienceis itself an
analysis,workis morethan a sourceof oxymoron. At the veryleast it presents
economicwell-being.It is an organizing frustrations community
fora socialscientific
principle ofdailylifeforindividuals; a key thathas beenwaitingto readin one place
component in themaintenance ofmarried-Wilson'sinterpretation ofthefindings from
couplefamilies; ancla stabilizing forceinthe thismassiveChicagostudy.One frustration
social organization of neighborhoods and isthatthebookmovesuncomfortably between
communltles. definitions of simpleterms,like "social
Wilsonprovides 'd strong basisfor organization"
structural and "social structure," and
urbanpoverty inananalysis that looksunflinchingly arguments thatrevolve around morecomplex
atvalues, attitudes,habits, Indoing concepts,
andlifestyles. suchas psychological self-efficacy
so,heseekstomovethedebate beyond whathe theory and"thenewurban poverty."I wasalso
seesas theideological quagmire ofthe"liberal-frustrated byinconsistent referencestospecific
structuralist" vs."conservative-behaviorist" poles studiesin thetextandtheneedto compare
ofcontemporary discourse. Anticipating hiscritics quotations onthepagetounnumbered notes
on boththeright andtheleft,Wilson usesthe at thebackofthebookin orderto findout
introduction tojustify hisfocus onproblems. He whatworkwasbeingdrawnupon.Ultimately,
argues thatthere isanurgent needto explicate however, theseannoyances areworth coping
"thepowerful andcomplex roleofthesocial within a workthatexpandsWilson'searlier

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 Featured Essays 419

efforts to reframe socialdiscourse on urban Neighborhoods thatofferfewlegitimate

poverty. employment opportunities, inadequate job
Thescopeofthebookisbroad,presenting information networks, andpoorschools leadto
an analysisof his data on poorinner-city thedisappearance ofwork. . . On theother
communities inthefirst section,andengaging hand,manyinner-city ghetto residentswho
thepolicydebatesin thesecond.The first maintain a connection withtheformal labor
section,"The New UrbanPoverty," draws market . . . are,ineffect, working againstall
heavilyon data collectedin the Chicigo odds.Theysomehow manage towork steadily
Urban Povertyand FamilyLife Study despite
thelackofwork-support networks(car
(UPFLS) conducted under Wiison's pool,informal job information networks),
leadership. The study, forwhichdatawere institutions (good schoolsand training
collected in 1987and 1988,hasfourparts:a programs), and systems(childcare and
NORC-conductedsurveyof 2,490 Black, transportation) thatmostoftheemployed
Mexican, Puerto Rican,andWhiteinner-city population inthiscountry relyon.Moreover,
residents; a moreextensive andopen-ended thetravel costs,childcarecosts,andother
surveyof a subsampleof 167 respondents employment relatedexpensesconsumea
living in the poorest census tract; significant portion oftheiralready meager
ethnographic research thatincludes99 case incomes. (Pp.5F55.)
studiesand participant observation; and a Wilson'schapteron the family seeksto
survey of approximately200 private explainwhy"onlyone-quarter oftheBlack
employers. Keenly awarethathehastakenup families whosechildrenlive withthemin
themantlelaiddownbytheChicagoSchool inner-city neighborhoods in Chicago are
of urbansociology,Wilsonseeks firstto husband-wife families," especially whenthree-
distinguish contemporary urbanpoverty from quarters ofMexicanfamilies, overone-half
thatofthe1930sandthe1960s.He concludes ofwhitefamilies andnearly one-half ofPuerto
thatjoblessness andtheconcentration ofpoor Ricanfamilies exhibit a similarfamily pattern
Blacksin inn r-cityneighborhoods have (p.87). Drawing extensively onhisqualitative
resulted ina shift awayfrom an"institutional data,Wilsonpresents a morenuancedand
ghetto-whose structure anclactivities
parallel complexanalysis ofthisissuethanhewasable
thoseof the largersociety" to one that to do in TheTrulyDisadvantaged. Here, he
"features a severelackofbasicopportunitiesexplores changing attitudes toward premarital
andresources andinadequate socialcontrols" sex,singleparenthood, andmarriage. One of
(p. 23). theinteresting findings basedonthesedatais
Essentially, Wilson'sargument is thatthe thatlow-income Blackmothers and fathers
combination ofjoblessness, which isexplained aremorelikely tobeengagedinsomekindof
in partbynationalpatternsof economic cohabiting or visiting partnerarrangement
structuraldislocationdisproportionately thanstatistics reveal.Yet,Blackmothers are
affecting low-wage workers; racialisolation; stillmorelikelyto live alone withtheir
andconcentratf d poverty produce constraintschildren thanaremothers inthethreeother
at boththecommunity and societallevels. comparison groups (Mexicans, Puerto Ricans,
Amongthe resultsoftheseconstraints are and Whites). Living alone has serious
whatWilsonterms "ghetto-relatedbehaviors implications forlabor-force attachment, and
andattitudes" (p.52) andthe"disappearanceWilsonprovides datathatshow,amongother
ofthetraditional married couplefamily" (p. things, thatmothers livinginhouseholds with
87).WhilethecDontours ofthisargument were atleastoneotheradultwhoprovides informal
laid out in The TrulyDisadvarltaged (1987), childcarewereconsiderably morelikelyto
WhenWorkDtsappears extends them,drawing havesomekindoflabor-force activitythan
moreheavily onsocialpsychological research those who were the only adult in the
and usingthesurvey andethnographic data household.
collectedin theUPFLS to providea more Inthischapter onfamilies, Wilsonrevisits
explicitand detailedexplanationof the the argulllent made in The Truty
relationship between neighborhood structureDisadvantaged thatthe risein Black male
and individualbehavior.For exalllple,in joblessness after 1970 explains the
introducing his discussion ofghetto-related complementary riseinfemale-headed families.
behavior andaltitudes, Wilsonsays: And,whileacknowledging thatsubseguent

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420 lFeatured Essays

studiesofthisissuehaveresulted in a mixed The datathatWilsonincludeson women

set of finclings, he suggests thatthisis due significantly expandhis analysis butdo not
largelyto the factthatthesestudiesuse transform it.Becausehe seesfemale-headed
national data.Referring totheworkofMark families asa sourceofsocialproblems, hedoes
Testa and MarilynKrogh,whichuses the notexplorestrategies thatwouldstrengthen
UPFLSclata,l heclemonstrates thatthereisa them,evenin theshortterm.Additionally,
relationshipbetween employmentand inthefaceofdatathatsuggest thatemployed
marriage foryoung, butnotolder,Blackmen Blackwomenare morelikelyto marry, he
in theirsalnple.Basedon theseand other privileges malejoblessness andfailstoaddress
findings, he arguesthatmale joblessness thewaysfamily lifecouldbe strengthened by
remains a primary explanation forthedecline eliminating barriers to employrnent forboth
intwo-parent, husband-wife familiesininner- women and men. Finally, though he
cityChicago neighborhoods. One of the acknowledges thattheriseinfemale-headed
disturbing aspectsofthisdiscussion is that households amongBlacksis affected, inpart,
Wilsonclrops thespecific referencetoChicago bynational trends,hedoesnotusehisdatato
and uses the terln "inner-cityghetto rethink theimportance offemale employment,
comll-lunity" as if referringto all such inandofitself, forthewell-being ofchildren
colllmunities ancltheirresidentsthus,at andfamilies.
leastimplicitly, extending his conclusions I havegivenlittleattention inthisreview
nationally. to thesecondpartofWilson'sbook:"The
Becausesomuchofthedebatesurrounding Social PolicyChallenge."This is, in part9
TheTrttly Disadvantaged focuseclupontheissue becausethearguments insectiontwo,though
ofmalejoblessness and Wilson'sfailureto clearly relatedto thefirst partofthebook,
address issues of employmentand arenotlinkeddirectly to it.In thissection,
employability oflow-incolne Blackwomen, I Wilsonprovides a historicaloverview ofU.S.
approached WhenWorkDisappearswith beliefs aboutpoverty andwelfare andproposes
questions aboutwhoseworkhe wouldargue solutions thatwouidbegintoameliorate some
haclcdisappeared and whatitS illlpliCatiOnS ofthemostegregious problems outlinedin
woulcl beforwomen andfamilies. I waspleased partoneofthebook.
to see tlaatWilsongaveseriousattention to There is an interesting discussionof
employmentalllong low-incomeBlack affirmative actionand thedebateaboutits
women.Ancl,though he continues to argue relevance forpoorinner-city Blacks.Here,
thatmalejoblessness isbothInoresevereand Wilsonargues against substitutingneed-based
morecritical tothemaintenance ofhusband- criteria forraced-based criteriainaffirmative
wifefamilies thanis femalejoblessness a actionprograms. Instead, hesuggests flexible
conclusion thatI question hecloes,atleast, application ofneed-and race-based criteria
provicle moreextensive dataandan analysis becauseoftheneedto continueto account
tosupport ta1S perSpeCtlVen for the cumulative effects of racial
Alnongthe mostinteresting aspectsof discrimination amongmiddle-class Blacks.
Wilsonts discussion ofBlackfemale joblessnessAlthough thisis an interesting idea,without
isrelated tohisfinding thatBlackwomen were a clearproposal forhowtheapplication ofrace
more significantlyisolated frompeople whowere and/orneed wouldbe determined, race is
working, haclsonlecollegeeducation, orwere likelyto be puslaedasidein favorof neede
nlarrieclthanwerejoblessBlackmales.Wilson Second,he placeshis discussionof social
attributes thisisolationto neighborhoodspolicystrategies in a cross-national context
characterizecl bya lackofaccessto resourcesandsuggests bothlong-term and short-term
provided bystableworking residents.
A second solutions.He maintainshis belief that
interesting finding is cliscussedin thechapter universal, andnottargeted, programs offer the
on theIneaningandsignificance ofrace,in onlyviablepolitical strategyforsocialreform,
whichWilsonreporl:s on theemployer surveysandhe arguesforthemerits ofrace-neutral
andtheextent towhichraceaffects thelabor- programs ofjob creation, expansionof the
market opportunities ofBlackmenandwomen. earnedincometax credit,public school
Herehedemonstrates that whileemployers have reform, childcare programs, and universal
negative attitucles
towarcl Blackwomen workers healthinsurancee Giventhecurrent political
onthewholethey prefer thenltoBlackmen. clilnateand the hegemonicideologyof a

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 Featured Essays 421

balancedbudget, itisunlikely
thatanynewsocial References:
programs willbe approvedin thenearfuture. DanielPatrick Moynihan.1965.TheNegroFamily:The
Nine yearsago,whenWilsonproposedsimilar CaseforNational
Action.WashingtonDC: United
policysolutionsinThe TrulyDisadvarltaged)
they StatesDepartmentofLabor.
WiLliam
J.Wilson.1987.TheTrulyDisadvantaged:
The
seemedmoderateandevensomewhat passe.In
InnerCity,the Underclass,and Public Policy.
today'spoliticalclimate,
however, theyarequite Chicago,IL:
University
ofChicagoPress.
progressive and I, forone,wouldbe delighted MarkTestaand MariLyn Krogh.19950"The Effectof
to liveto see them1mplemented. Employment on MarriageamongBlackMales in
Inner-city
Chicago."In The Declinein Marriage
Note: Among african
Americans:Causes,Consequences
and
The terms"LiberaLstructuralist"
and conservative Policy
Implications,
editedbyM. BeLindaTuckerand
behaviorist"
are fromtheworkofCornelWest. CLaudiaMitcheLl-Kernan,pp. 59-95.New York:
1993.RaceMatters.NewYork:Vintage Press,p.18. RusseLI
Sage Foundation.

SARA
S. McLANAmN
Princeton University

In case anyonemissedthe mainpointof Wilsonalsowants families andcorporations

WilliamJulius Wilson'slasttwobooks it's to investmoreinchildren andhe wantsthe
theeconomy, stupid! thistime, heputsitin government tobackthemupOFranceis cited
thetitle.
WhenWork and as a countrythat is muchmore ''family
relentlessly,
Disappears
at timeseloquently, documents theilleffects friendly"thantheUnitedStates,especially in
ofjoblessness onmen,women, children,and theareasofchildcare,family leaveandchild-
wholeneighborhoods. We canhopethathis support assurance. Germany and Japanare
new approachwillenlighten his previous praisedfortheirapprenticeships andon-the-
critics,
whohaveaccusedhimofignoring the jobtraining.
harmful effects ofracialdiscrimination and Thesecondobjective ofWilson's long-term
overemphasizing the pathology of single- solution is tobridge thegapbetween central
mother families. citiesandsuburbs. He arguesthatcitiesand
Wilsonisarguably theleading advocate for suburbs havecommon interestsandthatboth
an American socialdemocratic welfarestate, would gain fromgreater cooperation.
anclhisnewbooklaysouthismostdetailed Unfortunately, thispartofWilson'sagendais
planto dateforachieving thisend.In doing notvery welldeveloped, interms eitherofthe
so, he places himselfat odclswithboth argument forwhybothsideswouldbenefit
conservatives,whowanttominimize thescope from greater cooperation or howthismight
of government, and liberals,who prefer comeabout.I suspect thatwewilllearnmore
income-tested cashtransfersoverguaranteedabouttheseideasinthenextbook.
jobs. Wilsonrecognizes thatbuildinghuman
capital and restructuringmunicipal
Ze policies governance arelong-term solutions,andthus
Wilson'sproposals include short-termpolicies he offers severalproposalsforaddressing
as well as long-termobjectives. The joblessness and inequality in theshortrun.
cornerstoneof his long-term solutionis Theseincludeproposals to "makeworkpay"
investment in educationandskills,orwhat (e.g.,earnedincometax credit,universal
economists call humancapital.To improve healthinsurance), tolinkpeopletojobs(e.g.,
education,Wilsonwouldhave the federal better information, carpooling, job-readiness
government createnationalstandards and training), and to providepublicjobs oflast
back themup withpublicdata on school resort.
performance. Ide wouldequalizeresources With respectto public jobs, Wilson
acrossschoolclistricts and provideparents discussesthreedifferent strategiesthatare
withvouchers sothatthey can"votewiththeir currently beingproposed bydifferent people:
feet."Andfinally, hewouldexpandpreschool infrastructure maintenance jobs(proposeclby
programs so thatall children entering first EdwardRegan),publicsectorservicejobs
gradeare''readytolearn." (proposedbySheldonDanzigerand Peter

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422 Featured Essays

Gottschalk), and WPA-type jobs (proposed wouldeliminate allrace-based policies, Wilson

byMickey Kaus).He concludes thattheWPA supports opportunity-enhancing programs, such
strategyisthebestoptionbecauseitincludes asearlyeducation andjobtraining. He argues
both maintenanceand servicejobs and thattheseprograms, even whenaimeclat
becauseitisuniversalven DonaldTrump minorities,are popular with average
canapply. Americans, becausetheyreinforce thevalues
Mostoftheseproposals willbe familiarto ofself-sufficiency andequality ofopportunity.
thosewho have followedthedebateover Mostimportantly, Wilsonarguesthatpoor
welfarereform forthe past 10 years,and African Americans standtobenefit themost
Wilsondoes a nicejob of fleshing out the from policiesthathelpall low-wage workers
variousoptions forprovidingjobsoflastresort (e.g.,EITC,minimum wage,childcare,health
and connecting themwiththe"makework care) since theyare clisproportionately
pay"strategies. Unfortunately, he does not represented amongthisgroup.
addressthepoliticalobstaclesthatoperate Although Wilsondoesnotexplicitly discuss
againstgovernment-provided jobs such as gender,his argumentabout preferential
unionopposition and fiscalconstraints.He treatment versus universal policieswouldapply
alsoskirtstheissueofwhatto do aboutthe towomenas wellas toAfrican Americans. I
young menintheinnercitieswhohavenever suspectthathe wouldarguethataffirmative
helda steady jobandwhoarenotlikely tobe actionprograms primarily benefitmiddle-class
hired by local employerswithoutmajor and professional womenratherthanpoor
changeson bothsides.Judging fromthe women. Similarly, he wouldprobably support
interviewswithemployers thatarereportedopportunity-enhancing programs thatencourage
in Wilson'sbook,thetaskofpreparing some womento investin educationancltraining
oftheseyoung menforworkisgoing torequire programs thatmakethemmorecompetitive
a lotmorethanarranging carpools,setting withmen.Certainly his claimthatracial
up bulletin boards, and "job readiness minorities would disproportionately benefit from
training."Presumably, thelatteris meantto class-based policies applies towomen, especially
dealwiththe"problem cases,"butnodetails to singlemothers whoaredisproportionately
aregivenabouthowtheseprograms willwork. represented in thebottom tailoftheincome
distribution.ChildcareS family leave,andchilcl-
Itace,class and gellder support assurance areexamples ofpolicies that
Sociologistswillwantto knowhowWilson's woulddisproportionately benefit poorwomen
proposalsstackupinterms ofclass,race,and eventhough theyaregender-neutral bylaw.
gendercriteria. The answeris simple:Class Insum,byemphasizing universal policies and
trumps raceandgender. Whileheagreesthat employment-linked benefits overincome-testecl
AfricanAmericans havesuffered from transfers,
greatly Wilson oXers liberalsandprogressives
racialdiscrimination, Wilsonbelievesthat a newvisionofa welfare statethatis,inmany
suchas affirmativerespects,
racialpolicies,
preferential moreinlinewiththeprinciples ofthe
action,arenotlikely tosolvetheproblems of NewDeal thanwiththepolicies ofthelast30
joblessnessand growing incomeinequality.years. Whether hewillconvince hiscolleagues,
Moreover, he worriesabouttheresentmentnottomention thepoliticians, remains to be
thatsuchpolicies create, among
especially the seen.Ata minimum, hehasgivenusanelegant
workingpoor. Unlikeconservatives who vision ofwhatmight be.

JOEINO CONNOR
Atnherst
ofMassachusetts,
University

GermansociologistClausOffeonce argued
thatcapitalismcan live neitherwithnor ThePrivati2;ationofDcial Policy?Occupational
Welfareand the WelfareState in America,
withoutthe welfarestate. While Offe's Scandinavia and Japan, edited by Michael
statement wasmoreamusing thanaccurate, Shalev.NewYork:St.Martill'sl'ress,1996. 388
thegeneraltemperament
it has captured of pp. $79.95cloth.ISHN:0-312-16437-8.
period.On the one
the currenthistorical
hand,theClintonadministrationhasended

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