Reviewed by Elisabeth Keating

As the debate on welfare reform raged on in Congress the mid 1990s, welfare mothers were often labeled as drug abusing deadbeats, who might even have children in order to gain benefits. Words commonly used to describe them were, "cheats," "lazy," "drug addicts," liars" and "unproductive." Yet as Lisa Dodson eloquently demonstrates in Don't Call Us Out of Name, these negative stereotypes are not only largely inaccurate but also dehumanizing. They even help perpetuate family cycles of poverty, single motherhood and depression.

The book's title comes from Odessa, a thirty-two year-old former welfare mother. "I ask her about the phrase she used, don't call me out of name," writes Dodson. "Odessa tells me that women who have no money and no one to stand up for them get put into a bad position and they get misnamed. Most often they get called 'welfare mothers' or 'recipients,' words they will no longer acknowledge. With millions alongside her, Odessa has emerged by her own strength and some opportunity, and now she insists upon naming herself."

Dodson's book unfolds chronologically, and this structure is remarkably effective. As we listen to girls and women discuss the pressures they face at different points in their lives, patterns begin to emerge from the stories.

In Chapter 1, "Daughter's Work," we learn of the lives of daughters in low-income families. As daughters, girls are responsible for child rearing tasks boys are excused from. These chores keep them busy until late at night, taking time away from school and homework. Already, girls are falling behind, valued solely as caretakers of children. Lacking parental support for any other sort of life, little if any time for homework, and few if any educational opportunities, low-income daughters see no other option for themselves besides the same lives as their mothers.

Chapter 2, "Boyfriends, Love and Sex," explores girls' experiences of the teenage years. Getting a boyfriend as a teen is an all-important status symbol. Lacking any educational opportunities which might provide another source of identity, girls may fall into sex and pregnancy. In addition, sexual abuse is prevalent about girls who grow up in low-income households, and the consequences for their self-esteem can be huge.

Chapter 3, "Choice and Motherhood in Poor America," addresses the early years of welfare. As young mothers, girls are often abandoned by their boyfriends and thrown out of their homes by parents who can't support another child. They turn to welfare as the only solution. Yet the experience of being misnamed had begun. As Tania, put it, "They thought nothing of me as a person, a good student who didn't hang out or get high. I just needed some help because I had a baby and we had no money. But they treated me like a garbage can."

The women's stories exemplify the despair and numbing that stereotypes perpetuate and how they are passed from generation to generation. In one especially telling story, Renata, a young mother, tells of her early visits to the welfare office:

"I would cry all the way to the welfare office and my daughter would cry with me. Once inside, I never cried, never smiled, never said nothing I didn't have to. And you know, I think she saw that too, 'cause she would go all quiet with me... How did I feel? Like a stone. We were two stones, a big one and a little one."

Chapter 4, "Losses and Loathing in the Welfare Years," explores the deep depression that accompanies the years when women are caught in the bureaucracy of the welfare system. Chapter 5, "Moving On," describes how as their children grow older, women may find a hiatus from constant worry and work. In that space, they may begin to better their situation by building a support network, getting an education, and protecting themselves from abusive relationships. Finally, Chapter 6, "A Common Woman's Resistance," draws implications for public policy decisions based on women's experiences.

Unfortunately, many of the programs which helped the women Dodson met have been discontinued due to welfare reform. Lena, for example, a woman in her thirties, participated in a transitional program in her community college, designed to help women on welfare get the education and support to seek more education and find jobs. Lena had been a battered wife and had very low self-esteem but was encouraged by a stranger to take the course. To her surprise as she learned she gained confidence that she was capable of much more than she had been told by her husband. "I made a pact with my kids," she said. "We will only be taking steps forward now."

She finished the program and got a master's degree in counseling psychology, which she uses today to help other women. Yet the transitional program that gave Lena the support she needed at this crucial time lost its funding as a result of welfare reform. There are many such stories in Don't Call Us Out of Name stories that belie the negative stereotypes of "welfare moms."

The obstacles women on welfare face are formidableboth from within themselves and from the outside world which devalues them. The book suggests that it takes more than will power to break free of the cycle. It takes humane public policies that focus on empowering women through education and child care.

Though the stories she shares, Dodson encourages the reader to consider that welfare reform has not cut costs to society, but rather, increased them. Providing money for health care, quality child care programs, job training programs and educational opportunities is an investment in the future. As Deborah, a former welfare mother puts it, "There's money around, lots of it. We just got to decide who we are going to spend it on, and when we start deciding, it will be spent on children first."

Elisabeth Keating is a Seattle-based writer, editor and independent producer. She was Associate Editor of Scholastic Early Childhood Today and Parent and Child magazines and has contributed to Microsoft K-12 Connection, among other publications. She has a B.A. in Social Studies from Harvard College.