Community Action: Where Has It Been? Where Will It Go?

Abstract

The authors describe the origins of the concept of co-ordinated action on behalf of the poor in the rise of Community Chests and welfare councils. The Ford Foundation Gray Areas Program and the demonstration programs of the President's Committee on Juvenile Delinquency provided the initial testing for the major themes later embodied in the Community Action Program of the Office of Economic Opportunity. Community-action programs are credited with already having wrought major changes in the social welfare structure of American communities, particularly in spreading service programs to previously unorganized areas, enhancing competence of program-managers, reaching downward into poor and nearly poor groups for additional sources of leadership, training new black leaders, and developing the concept of subprofessional employment. Community-action agencies continue to be plagued by such major problems as, on the national policy level, guaranteed income, housing, and employment, and, on the local level, appropriate levels for decentralizing power and programs, departure from traditional patterns of delivering services, development of effective professional and lay leadership, and management of large-grant programs. The authors conclude that CAP has already made an enormous contribution. Attention must be given to enhancing planning capability, improving management and fiscal responsibility, and developing national policies which undergird local action effectively.