Charles Evers Quotes
Welfare makes you dependent upon someone to take care of you.
Evers, Charles, and Andrew Szanton. Have No Fear: The Charles Evers Story. John Wiley & Sons, 1997.
It was finally passed and signed into law on August 22, 1996
What makes this a noteworthy political quotation is that when he made the statement, his party had lurched to the radical right and almost no one else in the Republican party would publicly say that the Federal Government had any legitimate role that involved social services, food distribution, welfare or health care. Also the Republican Presidential candidate the day before had been discovered writing off the poorest 43 percent of the country. Heller however, was up for reelection in a state what was hit much harder than most in the Great Recession and without Federal Assistance many state residents would be in terrible circumstances and Heller would not fare well in the election if he took the then required Republican ideology. Also, Heller came from a blue collar family and had a much different outlook than most Republicans of that particular time.
This point of of view is actually held by a significant number of conservative Americans. They believe that welfare actually causes the inability of the very poor to get ahead. However, almost no people who have been recipients of welfare, including those who not only emerged from poverty but became wealthy and distinguished, agreed with them. The Congressman was silent about all the companies and wealthy individuals who regularly take corporate welfare and subsidies from the government and who do not seem to be negatively affected.
The first Jew to run for the Vice Presidency on a major party ticket.
This is an excellent statement of an ultra conservative view of welfare where the welfare recipient is “punished” for succeeding by losing all or part of the welfare payment. On the other side is a need based philosophy. If someone is in need, welfare will help. But once the person is on his feet and no longer has the degree of need, the welfare payment is ended and the funds are available for someone else is in need.
James Charles Evers was an American civil rights activist, businessman, disc jockey, and politician. Evers was known for his role in the civil rights movement along with his younger brother Medgar Evers. After serving in World War II, Evers began his career as a disc jockey at WHOC in Philadelphia, Mississippi. In 1954, he was made the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) State Voter Registration chairman. After his brother's assassination in 1963, Evers took over his position as field director of the NAACP in Mississippi. In this role, he organized and led many demonstrations for the rights of African Americans.
