Sorry, Politicians, But Fighting Poverty Isn’t Going to Defeat Terrorism

Despite Popular Political Rhetoric, Many Terrorists Are Well Educated and Well Off

Do poverty and a lack of education produce terrorism?

That has long been a favored explanation for eruptions of terrorism. Since the September 11, 2001 attacks, a succession of global leaders—among them Tony Blair, Pope John Paul II, the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Oscar Arias Sanchez, and Elie Weisel—fastened on poverty, illiteracy, and an absence of education as “root causes” of the violent phenomenon.

“We fight against poverty because hope is an answer to terror …” President George W. Bush declared before the United Nations Financing for Development Conference in March 2002. …

By Bruce Hoffman | August 1, 2016

There’s No Magic Bullet for Cleveland’s Poverty

But by Acknowledging the Myriad Causes and Effects of Low Incomes, the City Is Making Tremendous Progress

By Rob Fischer | July 19, 2016

Until the recent NBA championship of Lebron James’ Cavaliers, Cleveland has been known for topping a different kind of list—cities with the highest levels of poverty.

Since 2000, Cleveland has …

South L.A. Doesn’t Need Saving

Instead, the Area Could Be a Savior to a California That’s Pushing out Its Working Class

By Joe Mathews | July 7, 2016

“How can we save South Los Angeles?” is a tired question. It’s an artifact of previous decades when the region formerly called South Central was known by its reputation for …

The Dogged Determination Behind a Decade of Health Gains in South L.A.

Once in Competition, Community Health Centers United to Improve Access and Hold Community Leaders Accountable

By Nina Vaccaro | July 7, 2016

Health care, and access to it, has been quietly improving in South Los Angeles over the last decade. But, as I’ve seen firsthand while working with a collective network of …

What’s Behind California’s Sudden Urge to Help the Homeless?

It’s the Rich, Now Crowded Next to the Destitute in the Housing-Crunched State, Who Are Driving Politicians’ Newfound Attentiveness

By Joe Mathews | June 23, 2016

How did homelessness suddenly become such a hot issue across California? There are many reasons, and few of them have anything to do with people who are homeless.

Those reasons—economic anxiety, …

Why Urban Poverty Is More Desperate in India and More All-Consuming in China

This Brave New World: India, China and the United States

By Anja Manuel | June 15, 2016

The first thing that struck me was that the streets were spotless, polished clean with the swing of hundreds of broom strokes a day. Women squatted in front of their …

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