Laurie Rubiner

To discourage poor women from having children out of wedlock and joining the welfare rolls, the 1996 welfare reform law restricts the benefits available to unwed teen parents and provides federal bonuses to states that decrease out-of-wedlock births. In the following viewpoint, Laurie Rubiner contends that legislation to reauthorize the welfare reform law in 2002 must avoid coercive policies that penalize families for not conforming to the two-parent structure preferred by conservative lawmakers. Promoting marriage as the “quick-fix” solution to poverty will force poor women to choose between their children or remaining in or entering abusive relationships. The author is vice president for program and public policy with the National Partnership for Women and Families, an organization that helps women meet the demands of work and family.

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