The Other America: Poverty in the United States

Few works of contemporary non-fiction have had more lasting impact on the social consciousness of the overall society from which it arose than "The Other America", Michael Harrington's now classic tome on the egregious conditions under which what we would now call the "underclass" lived in mid-20th century American society. With an uncommon verve and uncanny precision, Harrington painstakingly detailed the disgusting and shocking realities of life for those many millions of Americans of both color and ethnicity living lives of desperate poverty in the midst of the affluent society. Millions of readers, myself included, were shocked to discover the extent to which this world coexisted with our own, and many of the social action programs that arose in the 1960s and thereafter used this book as a kind of reference guide to the realities of poverty in contemporary society. Indeed, what is most disturbing about anyone re-reading the book is the discovery of how little conditions have changed for those who through the accident of birth, color, and ethnic origin, find themselves inexorably trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty.Sadly, for all the glad-handing of politicians and the proclamations by global corporations of the new and more widespread prosperity of the 1990s, the sobering truth is that very little progress has been made. Indeed, in more recent books such as William Finnegan's excellent "Cold New World", Harrington's basic thesis of the co-existence of a starker, poorer, and powerless populace left stranded to live lives of quiet desperation is reconfirmed, putting the lie to the many proclamations of universal opportunity and promise that politicians now ballyhoo. The book, which was first published in the early 1960s, was required reading for most introductory sociology and contemporary history courses, and millions of young academics first learned of the extent of the national problem through a reading of this book. It is, in that sense at least, a modern classic. Harrington's basic thesis is incontrovertible; poverty is extensive and endemic, and is usually hidden from the view of most affluent Americans due to the ways in which the two subcultures coexist in modern society. Through the de-facto residential segregation of the two elements of the society, there is little meaningful contact, and the media tends to ignore the facts of the existence of the underclass, portraying arch-types which conform more to the sensibilities of the more affluent segments of the society that regularly view its programming and enforcing unrealistic images of what exists. As a previous reviewer commented, we no longer habituate the same environments, and we tend to avoid all unnecessary contact with anything to do with this other world of poverty and want. What Harrington originally described in such anguished and inflammatory terms, hoping to purposefully ignite America's slumbering conscience, has instead become a permanent feature of our conscienceless socio-cultural landscape.It is a sad truth that Harrington's book is as timely and as shocking today as it was some forty years ago. His account of the fate of millions of impoverished people of color and ethnicity remains as cogent and as relevant as it was then. Despite the long and tortured history of the social legislation that attempted to rework this problem in the decades since, the reality of the situation seems to be that nothing much has changed in terms of the life-chances and hopes of the members of the underclass. It remains a mainstay of introductory courses in social stratification, providing an excellent overview of the myriad of the sociological, political, and economic issues surrounding the underclass, and is a wonderful example of just how important one man's vision of the truth can be in orienting others meaningfully toward rectifying a social problem. Poverty may remain, as they say, always with us, but the shocking truths found in this book still sheds the light of day into an unappetizing aspect of contemporary society we all should be aware of.

Other that that the book is in good condition

Michael Harrington, the great socialist-humanitarian writer of the latter half twentieth century wrote "The Other America" in the early 1960's during a time of great change and renewed excitement about the possibilities for the future. Harrington who understood society better than most of his day shunned such discrimination based on race, class, economic standing, or national origin and these honorable views resound very highly in the pages of "The Other America. The book is a study of poverty and its underlying factors in the United States during the fifties and sixties, Harrington who would often move into and work in the neighborhoods and communities he was studying presents a dignified and unbiased case for the inhumanity that existed and still exists in the slums and poor towns of the United States. Harrington takes the gloves off for his analysis of the evolution of poverty. The writer explores the factors of racial discrimination, economic and socioeconomic discrimination, family structural instability, the effect of recessions and hard times on poor communities, and the gap in education that propagates the extension and survival of poverty into the future. One important factor that Harrington continuously brings up in "The Other America" is the views and feelings of indifference that the middle class and well off feel towards the poor and lower classes of the other America. Harrington exposes the inefficient and dastardly laws, mindsets, and societal norms that ensured the survival of poverty into the twentieth century (and surprisingly they ring true for the present day as well). The writer exposes the stories and faces behind the suffering of the other America but also presents ways in which the suffering could be alleviated or poverty stamped out completely in the United States. The socioeconomic analysis that is "The Other America can seem quite statistical to the reader with its constant use of numerical studies and figures to illuminate the problem of poverty, but these bothersome details can be overcome and even appreciated by understanding that "The Other America" was written during a time of rising economic and sociological disparities, and was brought forth to energize and push the country towards creating solutions to these problems in the course of attempting to create a more equal and humility-minded society. A great read nonetheless for it highlights to those willing to listen the need both then and now for a war on poverty.

This book is banned in Indiana due to the selection/deselection policies of 117 Evergreen Public Libraries and thus unavailable except by purchase from Amazon or other venders. Yes, the book is “old” and statistics are not current. However, the problem remains the same or worse in this institutionalized period (2018) of discrimination. This is basic background material. But, this book empowered Robert Kennedy’s demolished intent to improve the fabric of American society. Harrington believed it would take governmental planning and social investment to really deal with poverty. The American poor are often “invisible” to the mainstream. (p.2). The poor themselves often are pessimistic and victims of mental suffering, and often victims of institutionalized racism... Charity and private pensions meet only a fraction of the poor’s needs. (p. 119) The poor seem to suffer a greater percentage of mental illness. (p. 122.). “The poor are not like everyone else. They are a different kind of people. They think and feel differently; they look upon a different American than the middle class looks upon. They, and not the quietly desperate clerk or the harried executive, are the main victims of this society’s tension and conflict.” (p. 138.) America, according to Harrington has sought the integration of the poor with the poor and the segregation of the other Americans and society at large. (p. 154.) The impoverished see life as fate from which there is no escape. The huge federal initiative for improvement and will not happen with the current department administrator (2018) and apparent successors. The book is an informative read. Though a bit old, the author's intent still rings clear.

A great read!

Vivid description of poverty in US;poverty that creates a culture and harms society in an insidious way.