The Smokescreen of Poverty Deconcentration

Deconcentrating poverty is a smokescreen. It camouflages forced relocation of low-income households. As it has been implemented to date, deconcentration has meant manipulating the spatial arrangement of federally subsidized low-income families to either disperse or dilute poverty. Dispersal is accomplished through providing vouchers to subsidized families who wish to move out of subsidized developments that have concentrations of poverty, or forcing the movement of subsidized families through the demolition and redevelopment of their subsidized communities. Deconcentrating poverty diverts attention and resources away from adequately addressing poverty. Intervening factors, such as human capital endowments, health, access to supports, are not addressed by deconcentration and are pre-conditions for economic mobility. Addressing poverty directly through investments makes better use of the federal government's resources in these preconditions rather than forcing a change of address for very low-income subsidized families.