WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – Fifty years after President Lyndon Johnson declared an “unconditional war on poverty,” the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) on Wednesday, Jan. 8, praised the half century of safety net programs that continue to help lift millions out of poverty and pledged to continue to fight to strengthen them.
“We mark the 50th anniversary of the War on Poverty at a time when the very successful programs it inspired are under threat,” said JCPA Chair Larry Gold. “Despite the effectiveness of these programs, funding cuts and eligibility restrictions today threaten to weaken them and push America’s most vulnerable deeper into poverty. Instead of repeated cuts to programs that support Americans who are struggling, Congress needs to focus its attention on rebuilding an economy that works for everyone, including investments in job creation, education, and policies that provide a hand up to struggling families. In fact, the Senate currently has an opportunity to keep over 1.3 million Americans from sliding into poverty by voting this week to retroactively restore unemployment insurance.”
“In his 1964 State of the Union Address, President Johnson called for an end to poverty, declaring ‘our aim is not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it.’ These words inspired a national commitment to fighting poverty worthy of a moral country like ours,” said JCPA President Rabbi Steve Gutow. “In response to President Johnson’s call to action, Congress passed some of the most effective anti-poverty programs in our country’s history, including SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as Food Stamps), Head Start, Medicare, and Medicaid. These programs have brought about real results, reducing rates of poverty and improving living standards for America’s poor. Since then, the JCPA, the Jewish community at large, and our partners in the interfaith and anti-poverty communities have fought not only to protect those programs, but to strengthen them as our needs have increased.”
The Jewish Council for Public Affairs through local and national advocacy, raises awareness of and works to strengthen human needs programs that provide opportunity for children and families. In partnership with Catholic Charities, the 2014 Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization, “50 years in the Fight Against Poverty,” will focus on how far we have come and where we need to go.
“On this anniversary, today’s challenge is to take what we have learned and strengthen and protect efforts to reduce poverty,” continued Gutow. “Today, with 46 million Americans still living in poverty, we reflect on how many more would be suffering without these programs and pledge ourselves to continue our work until we fulfill the biblical promise, ‘there shall be no needy among you.’”
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JCPA, the public affairs arm of the organized Jewish community, serves as the national coordinating and advisory body for the 14 national and 125 local agencies comprising the field of Jewish community relations.