In this episode, a synopsis of the Elizabethan Laws is given and how it became the groundwork to current social welfare legislation and common perceptions of those in poverty.

I discuss how we view "the poor", how we tie personal worth to a person's labor output, the value America puts on labor, and the affect it has on contemporary society. 

Articles referenced in this episode:

Auctioning off Families
Poor Relief in Early America
HHS Poverty Guidelines
1601 Elizabethan Poor Law 

Part 2: Includes older civilization structures of community, current cultures that practice other forms of social welfare, the Welfare Queen stereotype, and criminilzation of the poor.