As we celebrate the LBJ School's 50th anniversary, we look back on President Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 State of the Union address, where he declared an "unconditional war" on poverty. That war established a range of new programs designed to reduce poverty and inequality in the United States and laid the foundation for today's anti-poverty programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); Medicare; Medicaid; Head Start; and expanded Social Security benefits. As the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to greatly increase the proportion of Americans suffering from serious economic distress, the LBJ School is launching a limited speaker series, "Poverty Now," which will look at the reasons behind the persistence of poverty and inequality in the United States and will examine a range of policies intended to address these problems.
This week on LBJ In the Arena, LBJ School Dean Angela Evans will speak with LBJ School faculty member James Galbraith and Patricia Ruggles, who are curating the speaker series, about the topics they will address, upcoming guests and the overall goal for the series.