Church Quote by Franklin D. Roosevelt
““All agree that, the first responsibility for the alleviation of poverty and distress and for the care of the victims of the depression rests upon the locality — its individuals, organizations and Government. It rests, first of all, perhaps, upon the private agencies of philanthropy, secondly, other social organizations, and last, but not least, the Church. Yet all agree that to leave to the locality the entire responsibility would result in placing the heaviest burden in most cases upon those who are the least able to bear it. In other words, the communities that have the most difficult problem, like Detroit, would be the communities that would have to bear the heaviest of the burdens. And so the State should step in to equalize the burden by providing for a large portion of the care of the victims of poverty and by providing assistance and guidance for local communities. Above and beyond that duty of the States the national Government has a responsibility.””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Address on poverty relief, 1930s
Local communities need help, but the state must share the burden to avoid overloading the poorest.
In simple terms: Government must aid local efforts to ease poverty.
Key Takeaway
Balance local and national responsibility for aid.
Themes
poverty
government
community
Mood
concerned
determined
Type
political
ethical
When to use this quote
- policy making
- social work
- nonprofit planning
- advocacy
Key Concepts
social policy
philanthropy
public welfare
Questions to Reflect On
- How can national policies best support struggling communities?
- What role should private philanthropy play alongside government?
A Different Perspective
Too much reliance on local resources can be ineffective.
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