Poverty in 2021 looks different than in 1964 – but the US hasn’t changed how it measures who’s poor since LBJ began his war

Poverty in 2021 looks different than in 1964 – but the US hasn’t changed how it measures who’s poor since LBJ began his war

In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared war on poverty. The U.S. had no official measure of poverty and therefore no statistics on its scope, shape or changing nature. So the government came up with a way of measuring how many people in America were poor.

Counting the poor

Poverty means not having the money to purchase the basic necessities to maintain a minimally adequate life

Other Measures of Poverty

Most analysts consider the official poverty line to be an extremely conservative measure of economic hardship.

The only way to win the war

To address a problem, you must have a clear understanding of its scope

Source

Get in