History Of Welfare Essay

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History of Welfare

The welfare system has helped families over time sometimes for their entire lives. Welfare is a social support system that helps families. It is provided by the government. Funding for the welfare system comes from general government revenue. The welfare system was originally call the aid to dependent children and this was created in the great depression. The AFDC was created to decrease the poverty during this time in American history. Overtime the welfare system has evolved. Although welfare provides assistance to some families, some people take advantage of the system by living off of unemployment and this can cause unfair expenses for taxpayers.

The history of welfare goes all the way back to the roman empire when the first emperor gave citizens food that could not afford it. Then, social welfare was enlarged in china the song dynasty government supported many programs that made retirement homes, clinics and the welfare system for the poor. In 1601 the first welfare systems in europe that provided food for the poor. This system then moved its way into bigger countries such as germany and great britain. This expanded to the United States in the time of the Great Depression when president Roosevelt introduced the New Deal that focused on public spending projects instead of cash payments. The Social security act was amended in 1939.

The United States has provided food, shelter and education for the past 75 years. When the Great Depression hit many families suffered. It was estimated that one-fourth of the labor workforce was unemployed during the hardest time of the depression. Many families were living in poverty and needed assistance in order to live through the hard time many were faced...

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...th this being said; easy access for becoming eligible to financial assistance and the increase in number people receiving the assistance, many people would begin to wonder if everyone receiving assistance is really in need of aid or is just using the system to get by.
There has been many cases of fraud that people have lied about housing and unemployment. This leads to questionable debate whether recipients should be drug tested or not. In North Carolina a law has been passes for all of the recipients getting assistance must be drug tested. (Parker 1) “For example, according to The Associated Press, Utah saved $350,000 in its first year of drug-screening welfare applicants, though it found only about 12 people who tested positive” (Parker 1). Many states have questioned this new law to be passed or not because it may save the government money in the long run.

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