“We must create: An America in which the concept of ‘working poor’ is an anachronism. An America that allows an individual to work full time and earn the money to raise a family and live in safe, decent, affordable housing. An America where an individual is able to afford access to the highest quality of health care this nation is capable of providing. An America that strengthens our social safety net for children, the elderly and the most vulnerable among us. An America of equal opportunity, and the strength to repair the errors of the past.”
Our Quote of the Week presents a vision for a nation that provides stability, security, and opportunity for each and every one of us.
This week, we’re sharing Sargent Shriver’s 2004 Speech at the Community Action Partnershp Convention from 2004. Here, we encounter an 88-year-old Sargent Shriver praising the work of Community Action staff and volunteers 40 years after he had overseen the creation of the agency. His words remind us of his motivation for adopting an approach to combating poverty that involved the empowerment of an entire community, of what he and his peers referred to as “maximum feasible participation.”
Almost 20 years have passed since Sargent Shriver reiterated how his vision for Community Action could lead to a stable, prosperous society, but his message feels particularly timely today. As more and more communities grapple with a growing affordability crisis, we must address the exploitation, discrimination, and predatory policies that allow poverty to persist and grow in too many of our communities. There are no quick solutions to making housing, health care, and groceries more affordable and wages more reasonable. But it is clear that it going to take all of us working together and putting pressure on business and political leaders to make Shriver’s vision of America a reality.
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