“My Crying Is Not a Cry by Itself”: Building Sustainable Social Ties through a Poor People’s Organization

• Author: Joan Maya Mazelis
• Published date: 01 May 2020
• Date: 01 May 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0002716220918165

110 ANNALS, AAPSS, 689, May 2020

DOI: 10.1177/0002716220918165

“My Crying Is

Not a Cry by

Itself”: Building

Sustainable

Social Ties

through a Poor

People’s

Organization

By

JOAN MAYA MAZELIS

918165ANN THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMYBuilding Sustainable Social Ties

research-article2020

Research has highlighted that social ties help poor peo-

ple to survive, but has also shown that nonkin ties often

only last a short time. In this article, I argue that

organizations that serve the needs of poor people can

help to create more sustainable supportive ties among

them. Drawing on participant observation and ethno-

graphic interviews with twenty-five members of the

Kensington Welfare Rights Union (KWRU) in

Philadelphia—an organization of, by, and for poor

people—I found that supportive ties among members

of KWRU can last years or even decades. I show how

this organization enabled poor people to create and

maintain supportive ties. KWRU provided people liv-

ing in desperate poverty space for frequent interaction,

connection, and cooperation. The organization sup-

ported a sense of kinship among members, and group

leaders often helped to mend rifts between members.

While KWRU is distinctive, other organizations that

serve the needs of poor people could use this model to

be more responsive to the needs of those in poverty.

Keywords: social ties; poverty; social support; survival

strategies; sustainable ties

Social scientists have long documented the

importance and utility of social ties

(Domínguez and Watkins 2003; Edin and Lein

1997; Granovetter 1973, 1974/1995; Mazelis

2015, 2017; Seccombe 1999; Stack 1974). A

Joan Maya Mazelis is an associate professor of sociology

in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and

Criminal Justice at Rutgers University–Camden, and

an affiliated scholar at Rutgers–Camden’s Center for

Urban Research and Education. She is the author of

Surviving Poverty: Creating Sustainable Ties among the

Poor (NYU Press 2017).

NOTE: This study was made possible by a National Science

Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant

Award, a School of Arts and Sciences Dissertation

Fellowship Award at the University of Pennsylvania, two

Otto and Gertrude K. Pollak Summer Research Fellowships

from the Department of Sociology at the University of

Pennsylvania, and a National Science Foundation RU

FAIR ADVANCE award at Rutgers University.

Correspondence: mazelis@camden.rutgers.edu

BUILDING SUSTAINABLE SOCIAL TIES 111

range of studies indicate that the poor in particular rely on such ties to further

employment opportunities (Newman 1999; Smith 2005, 2007) and as a means of

survival (Edin and Lein 1996, 1997; Harknett 2006; Hansen 2004; Nelson 2000).

Since the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of

1996, commonly known as welfare reform, the U.S. public safety net has become

increasingly threadbare. Social service organizations provide support to poor

people (Domínguez and Watkins 2003), but they cannot meet all needs. As a

result, private safety nets of social ties—typically kin ties—have become ever

more crucial for the poor (Edin and Lein 1997; Harknett 2006; Mazelis 2017;

Stack 1974). Those without kin to depend on sometimes develop fleeting ties

with new acquaintances that can further the instability of their lives (Desmond

2012). This article argues that an organization that serves the needs of poor peo-

ple can create conditions in which they can build highly supportive ties with

nonkin that last for the long term and provide deep support for those in dire

need.

This article focuses on the Kensington Welfare Rights Union (KWRU), a

grassroots anti-poverty organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In KWRU,

people who were poor enough that most had experienced homelessness built

sustainable ties through membership in this distinctive organization of, by, and

for poor people. I use the term “sustainable ties” for these nonkin ties because

they lasted at least a year and sometimes lasted decades. The term suggests

greater durability than “disposable ties” (Desmond 2012); disposable ties dissolve

in weeks or months, despite strong sentiment and mutual support. This article

focuses on the research question: How did this distinctive organization enable

poor people to develop and maintain supportive nonkin social ties?

Since its founding by poor women in 1991, KWRU has drawn membership

from throughout Philadelphia. Dedicated to raising awareness of the perspec-

tives and experiences of poor people, it has held regular demonstrations making

a case for poverty alleviation and destigmatization over the years. Its ultimate

goal is to end poverty nationwide, but it has supported members’ day-to-day

survival as well: distributing free food, providing temporary housing, and address-

ing other urgent issues. I found that in lieu of membership dues, it expected

members to participate in rallies, volunteer at the office, and help other members

however they could. As this article describes, the sustainable ties it has created

and maintained have provided deep and broad support to extremely poor mem-

bers. The resilience of sustainable ties gives such ties particular power in the lives

of people with few advantages.

Background

Supportive social ties among poor people

Research on social support among poor people has demonstrated that social

networks provide significant benefits (Domínguez and Watkins 2003; Edin and

Lein 1997; Mazelis 2015, 2017; Mazelis and Mykyta 2011; Newman 1999; Stack