A War on Global Poverty: The Lost Promise of Redistribution and the Rise of Microcredit

The US involvement in late twentieth-century campaigns against global poverty focused on women as the deserving poor, with antipoverty programs increasingly focusing on women as economic actors who could help lift families and nations out of destitution.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 328 pages
Publication date: 13 June 2023
Publisher: Princeton University Press

A fresh and comprehensive account of the United States' involvement in campaigns to end global poverty in the 1970s and 1980s is provided in Joanne Meyerowitz's book, A War on Global Poverty. The book goes beyond the standard narratives of development and delves into the reasons why antipoverty programs increasingly focused on women as the deserving poor.

When the United States joined the war on global poverty, economists, policymakers, and activists were faced with the challenge of addressing a world where millions lived in need. Influenced by socialists, social democrats, and religious humanists, who were motivated by a desire to address inequities between and within nations, they rejected the notion that economic growth would automatically trickle down to the poor. Instead, they proposed a range of programs aimed at redressing these imbalances.

In the emerging "women in development" movement, women were positioned as economic actors who could play a crucial role in lifting families and nations out of poverty. Development experts and antipoverty advocates recognized the potential of women as entrepreneurs and saw microcredit, with its small loans, as a grassroots solution to address poverty. Meyerowitz's book demonstrates that at a time when the overextension of credit had led to financial instability in poorer nations, loans to impoverished women replaced more ambitious proposals that aimed at redistribution.

A War on Global Poverty is based on a wealth of sources, providing a detailed and insightful analysis of a critical transformation in antipoverty efforts in the late twentieth century. The book explores the legacies of this transformation and sheds light on the ongoing challenges and opportunities in addressing global poverty. It is a valuable resource for scholars, policymakers, and activists interested in understanding the history and future of antipoverty efforts.

Weight: 526g
Dimension: 155 x 237 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780691250281