Fulfilling Fears and Fantasies: The Role of Welfare in Right-Wing Social Thought and Strategy

Abstract

Draws on 25 years as an activist for welfare issues to examine the dual role of "welfare" in furnishing a historic source of fear & fantasy for right-wing views of the world, & in providing a common enemy & shared vision for the current coalition of dissimilar conservative forces. It is maintained that advocates of an American welfare state purposely mislead their opponents about their structural intentions in order to sell programs like Aid to Families with Dependent Children as temporary. This lack of clarity, compounded by the Left's failure to promote welfare as a social achievement for all, allowed right-wing proposals to gain widespread acceptance in the political arena. Conservative opposition to welfare has served as a unifying factor for a Right wing plagued with divisions over other issues. The Right correctly views welfare as representative of everything they oppose; therefore, it is proposed that welfare rights advocates combat Right-wing fears/fantasies by aggressively defending, redefining, & broadening democratic visions of welfare rights as economic & social justice for all. J. Lindroth