Ruth Sidel

In the following viewpoint, Ruth Sidel maintains that the best solution for poverty is a universal family policy funded by the government. This policy, Sidel explains, would provide cash payments for families with children, health care, child care, and other services that would improve the lives of American families, especially the poorer ones. Although Sidel admits that such a policy could be expensive, she contends that the current costs of poverty—including homeless shelters, drug addiction, and crime—are far costlier in the long run. Sidel is a nationwide speaker on women's issues and a professor of sociology at Hunter College in New York City. She is the author of the book Keeping Women and Children Last: America's War on the Poor, from which the following viewpoint is excerpted.

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