The War on Poverty and the Racialization of “Hillbilly” Poverty: Implications for Poverty Research

Abstract

The poverty literature illustrates the significance of race in the politics of U.S. social welfare policy from the inception of the 1935 safety net through more recent assaults on the welfare poor. One gap in the literature is an analysis of how Whiteness might be implicated in this important public arena. This article explores the discursive construction of Appalachia as a homogenous (White) culture and bounded region and the significance of this trope in the War on Poverty. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications for future research concerning the racialization of the poor and poverty policy.