Poverty, by America

Poverty abolitionism. Blends description of the exploitative two-tier society we all participate in, earnest responses to socioeconomic myths about destitution and welfare, and policy possibilities for undoing the ways society and government actively perpetuates both wealth and poverty.

The book is part analysis devoted to debunking most of the oft-repeated myths about poverty and the poor. But while doing that, Desmond turns the tables on the rest of us: poverty exists and persists because we benefit from it, and we like it that way. The second part of the book is all solutions on how to abolish poverty. None of this is easy, and, in the current political climate, advocating for poverty abolition seems hopelessly naive. As Desmond himself notes, it will take collective action and social movements. We're not there yet. And it feels like the countervailing forces currently pushing fascism and theocracy are not running out of steam. It certainly helps that Desmond writes extremely well and clearly. As with Evicted, it's worth reading the end notes. Let's see if Poverty, by America gets as much acclaim as Evicted.

Sociology