The Shriver Report: A Woman's Nation Pushes Back from the Brink
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. Maria Shriver’s uncle John F. Kennedy said this in his inauguration address more than 50 years ago. A war on poverty began in the 1960s, but how much progress has been made? The Shriver Report resumes this crusade by exposing disturbing facts about the growing marginalization of American women. More families now live in poverty or “on the brink,” thanks to the exploitation of women as cheap labor. America has lost the bedrock of a strong and abundant middle class. Family structure has crumbled. This collection of research, articles, and photographs compiled by Shriver and the Center for American Progress includes contributions from Hillary Rodham Clinton; Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Nickel and Dimed (2001); and others. It also provides a startling wake-up call for policymakers and anyone hoping to survive a culture that siphons wealth upward to a very powerful few. --Susan DeGrane