Social Policy: Essential Primary Sources

Collected here are about 150 primary source documents on social policy issues, specifically dealing with civil rights, children, education, housing, health, welfare policy, and policies involving language and disabilities. The book focuses on the US and Europe but does include documents related to the global world and written by an international group of authors. Documents span from the nineteenth century to the present and provide general overviews, rather than detailed political or sociological analysis, so that they are accessible to younger readers and students. Each entry is accompanied by key facts, an introduction on its historical background, a discussion of its significance, and a brief bio of the author. They are mostly organized chronologically, in addition to chapters on shaping social policy and current issues affecting healthcare, housing, welfare, social security, education, and employment. Some of the source authors include Theodore Roosevelt, Jane Addams, the United Nations, George W. Bush, Abraham Lincoln, Upton Sinclair, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, the US Congress, and Maya Angelou; these authors touch on topics as diverse as affirmative action, fair housing, abortion, Hurricane Katrina, poverty, and racial discrimination. Annotation c2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)