The class covers at the origins of the American welfare state during the New Deal, its post-World War II expansion and increasing opposition by Neoliberals and Conservatives since the 1960s. It will first look at the ideological and theoretical foundations of welfare policies, their institutionalization, implementation and impact. Second, students will develop case studies on specific welfare policies, institutions and/or discourses. Literature: Michael B. Katz: In the Shadow of the Poorhouse: A Social History of Welfare in America (1996). Michael B. Katz: The Price of Citizenship: Redefining the American Welfare State (2008). close