The Culture of Poverty: Pity and Self-Critique in Confrontations With Poverty and School Failure, 1959-2013

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

Since 1959, the term “culture of poverty” has been used not just to describe, but to explain the behavior of poor people. Although nuanced descriptions of the lives of poor people have been often intriguing, interpretations of the materials have been heated, particularly around the issue of “blaming the victim.” Claiming that social science accounts of poverty should not make the lives of the poor worse, powerful critiques of culture of poverty theorizing emerged from 1965-1975 in anthropology, linguistics, and psychology, and the very idea seemed to disappear until a recent resurgence, particularly in sociology. Through historical and textual analysis, this session redirects the power of earlier critiques to the present situation and considers the conditions necessary for educational innovation.

Sub Unit

• Division G - Social Context of Education / Section 4: Social Context of Educational Policy, Politics, and Praxis

Chair

• Ray McDermott, Stanford University

Papers

• Interdisciplinary Critiques of the “Culture of Poverty” by Cole, Labov, and Valentine: 1965-1975 - Ray McDermott, Stanford University

• Rewriting Class, Culture, Colonialism, and the “Culture of Poverty”: Ethnographic Work by Eleanor Leacock, 1959-1980 - Shirin Vossoughi, Northwestern University; Katherine Rodela, Washington State University

• Toward “Surviving Whole”: Toni Morrison’s Revisions of the “Culture of Poverty,” 1970-1993 - AnnMarie Darrow Baines, The George Lucas Education Foundation; Bronwyn Clare LaMay, Stanford University

• Reclaiming “Culture”: Critiquing the “Culture of Poverty” and “Culture and Poverty” Research Agendas - Michael Scroggins; Herve Varenne, Columbia University

Discussants

• Manuel Espinoza, University of Colorado - Denver

• Jill P. Koyama, The University of Arizona