#1215 Demonizing welfare to divide and conquer
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Jay Tomlinson
4.5 • 3.4K Ratings
🗓️ 3 October 2018
⏱️ 78 minutes
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Summary
Air Date: 10/2/2018
Today we take a look at the fact that welfare technically no longer exists in America except as a dog whistle term used to push an ideology that divides the majority for the enrichment of the minority.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: The 'Welfare' Dog-Whistle Part 1 - Citations Needed (@CitationsPod) - Air Date 2-7-18
In the United States, "Welfare" is more often than not a malleable propaganda term meant to dog whistle programs for African-Americans and Latinos while signaling to whites that their checks and corporate handouts will remain untouched.
Suzanne Mettler, author of the new book, “The Government-Citizen Disconnect,” joins us to discuss the Trump Administrations plan to rebrand social programs as “welfare.”
Ch. 3: THE MIDTERMS MINUTE- Illinois’ Battleground Races! - Best of the Left Activism
Take action! Click the title and/or scroll down for quick links and resources from this segment.
Ch. 4: The 'Welfare' Dog-Whistle Part 2 - Citations Needed (@CitationsPod) - Air Date 2-7-18
We dig into the racist history of anti-welfare crusades, the political purpose of pathologizing poverty, and the meaninglessness of phrases like "welfare reform," with guest Sarah Jaffe.
Ch. 5: The history of work requirements and the war on Medicaid - @offkiltershow - Air Date 4-26-18
Rebecca speaks with Robert Samuels about his article, “Wisconsin is the GOP model for ‘welfare reform.’ But as work requirements grow, so does one family’s desperation.”
Ch. 6: A Welfare Check - Reveal - Air Date 7-15-16
Today, only a quarter of welfare dollars actually goes toward basic assistance – housing, transportation or essential household items.
Ch. 7: Final comments on how people taking a principled stand for fairness is making society worse
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This program is made possible by members and donors to the show. |
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| 0:23.5 | Now welcome to this episode of the award-winning best of left podcast in which we shall learn |
| 0:28.1 | the fact that welfare technically no longer exists in America except as a dog whistle term |
| 0:33.7 | used to push an ideology that divides the majority for the enrichment of the minority. |
| 0:39.2 | Clips today come from citations needed, ring of fire, off-kilter, and reveal. |
| 0:50.0 | So what do we mean when we talk about welfare? |
| 0:53.0 | It's really this catch all term that could encompass any or all of the following social safety |
| 1:00.6 | net programs that could include the supplemental nutrition assistance program known as SNAP, |
| 1:06.0 | better known layman terms as food stamps. |
| 1:08.2 | Housing assistance, supplemental security income, temporary assistance to needy families, |
| 1:14.3 | the TANF, which is cash benefits, and general assistance. |
| 1:18.5 | Usually we're going to reform or the GOP is going to attack and gut welfare because welfare |
| 1:25.7 | is for poor black people. |
| 1:27.9 | It's deeply racialized. |
| 1:28.9 | It also is a kind of, for example, if you were to say come over to my house and say, |
| 1:33.8 | let me borrow your lawn or I say, I don't do welfare. |
| 1:36.9 | It's a colloquial pejorative for something that's kind of a superfluous giveaway. |
| 1:43.0 | You sort of don't deserve, but I'm going to give it to you because I'm nice because I'm benevolent, |
... |
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