The War on Poverty in America: A Fifty Year Perspective and Opportunities for the Future

Presented as part of the semi-annual staff training program for ADVOCAP, the Community Action Agency serving Fond du Lac, Green Lake, and Winnebago Counties in Wisconsin. This presentation will explore the historical context and ideas behind initiating the War on Poverty; the basic components of the War on Poverty; how it evolved in the short term and long term; the hurdles it overcame; its successes and disappointments; and the impact on poverty of the changing economic environment over the last 35 years. The program will then present some ideas and approaches which can be used in the future to continue to give people in poverty the opportunity to succeed for themselves and their families.