Winning the War on Poverty: The Swedish Strategy

i e Swedish Strategy he center of the city looking for scraps or handouts. And there is some prostitution, idney E. Zimbalist related at least in part to drug addiction. In sum, these people apparently form the hard With much fanfare, President Johnson a poverty proportion similar to Sweden's, core casualties of urbanization, whom even committed the United States to the eradicanamely, West Germany with 3.0 percent, the efficient Swedish social services have tion of poverty in the mid-1960s. By the According to the relative measure used, the been unable to salvage, though the numbers 1980s, the war on poverty had deteriorated poverty yardstick for a three-person family are small. into President Reagan's "war on the poor." was set equal to the average per capita inSlums and Housing. It is difficult to In 1984, there were a half million more come for the given country. In other words, make objective comparisons of housing con Americans below the official poverty line if a three-person family received a household ditions on a cross-national basis; therefore, than in 1965, despite a slight improvement income below the mean income per inhabimy observations are necessarily brief and over the previous year.1 The reasons for this tant of that nation, the household was conimpressionistic but hopefully of some value failure are too familiar to require restatesidered as "poor." Poverty levels for other nonetheless. One of my self-assigned pro ment. Suffice it to say that despite all its sizes of households were adjusted upward or jects was to locate the worst slums of wealth and power, the United States has downward according to the number of Stockholm, Sweden's largest city and its been unable—or unwilling—to make lasting household members. Based on this apcapital. Repeated inquiries were made, both headway toward this historic challenge. proach, 3 percent was the minimum in the of officials and of private residents, and During the same period, Sweden, another mid-1970s among the eight industrialized many excursions were taken, both on foot Western democracy, has been making conWestern countries. By way of contrast, onand by public transportation, to the lowest tinuing progress in its conquest of poverty, ly one of the nations was measured to have income neighborhoods and older parts of the probably reducing it to the minimum that a higher poverty level than the United metropolitan area. By consensus of our has been achieved anywhere else in the States: France, with 16 percent. various informants, the Alby and Tensta world. In effect, Sweden has largely acMore recently, a study with a somewhat neighborhoods were identified as the loca complished what was proclaimed in the different definition of relative poverty and an tion of the poorest families with a high pro United States to be its highest social priorioverlapping, but not identical, group of counportion of recent immigrants to the country ty two decades ago. tries, pegged the United States at 16.0 perand a high rate of dependency on Social How did these opposite results come cent in poverty in 1980. The measure was Assistance—the Swedish counterpart of our about? What does Sweden "know" about the highest proportion among the seven napublic assistance programs. The two dis fighting and overcoming indigency—and, as tions included in the study. Sweden again tricts are the site of large-scale, multiple-unit we shall see, unemployment, slums, infant was in the lowest bracket with 5.0 percent, apartment complexes, one of them inside the deaths, and so on—that we don't? At what This time Norway was slightly lower, with city limits and one outside. They correspond costs are such social gains made? A recent 4.8 percent.3 In both studies, the Swedish roughly to what would be considered in this sabbatical stay in Stockholm provided the poverty percentage was less than one-third country as public housing projects. A persis author with clues and materials bearing upon that of the percentage in the United States, tent search through the housing develop these vital questions for American and in the bottom group of countries studied, ments, and through older neighborhoods in observers. That it is possible for a society to Because Sweden was the only country in other parts of Stockholm, failed to turn up lift itself above many of the social problems both comparisons that was in the lowest pair much deteriorated housing anywhere. There that afflict this country gives some ground of countries, it may be argued that overall was an occasional dilapidated structure or for hope, a commodity that is hard to come it came out below the rest. The United two to be seen, but none of the American ur by in face of the persisting material needs of States, in contrast, was the highest in one ban phenomenon of blocks and blocks of millions of Americans. study and second highest in the other. Clearrazed, abandoned, or ramshackle housing. ly, a much better performance record than The infrequent spots of physical blight ap c , o ours is feasible for a modern affluent society, parently were not permitted to spread and we is uccess What of homelessness and hunger? Unoftake over entire streets and neighborhoods. Poverty. Social progress in Sweden in ficial estimates in Stockholm place the total There was nowhere to be found the bleak recent decades is impressive. In 1976, an number of homeless at around 100, out of expanses of extended wastelands such as in authoritative comparative analysis that a total metropolitan area population of some the slums of urban America, employed a standardized relative measure of IV2 million. The homeless are for the most Health Conditions. Life expectancy poverty yielded an estimate of 13.0 percent part alcoholics, drug addicts, and mentally and infant mortality are common indicators of the United States population below the ill who are not accessible to rehabilitation of the general health of a population. Here, poverty level (as compared with 11.9 perdespite the extensive service resources of too, Sweden is in the forefront of interna cent, according to the "official" United the Swedish welfare state. A few alcoholics tional standing. Average length of life is 76 States poverty line). For Sweden, the same may be seen at times in the vicinity of the years, as compared with 74 years in the measure yielded a poverty rate of 3.5 permain subway stations, presumably attracted United States. In 1983, infant deaths were cent.2 Only one of the eight Western nations by the underground shelter available there, at an international record low of 7.0 per in the comparative analysis came out with An occasional beggar-musician will be en1,000 live births versus 11.2 per 1,000 in the