UA’s Fording Wins Book Award

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. Richard C. Fording, professor and chair of political science at The University of Alabama, received the Herbert Simon Book Award for “Disciplining the Poor.”

The recognition comes from the Public Administration Section of the American Political Science Association. It marks the third time Fording and co-authors Joe Soss and Sanford F. Schram have been recognized for their work on the 2011 study of poverty governance in the U.S. over the past four decades.

The book previously won the Michael Harrington Award from the APSA, as well as the Oliver Cox Cromwell Award from the American Sociological Association.

“We tried to clarify the central role of race and how that plays into poverty governance in the last 40 years,” Fording said. “Our research was able to talk about how the U.S. has transformed the economy in many cases to a low-wage, service economy. Intertwined in all of our research is the use of the poor as a political scapegoat by both parties.”

The book takes an unflinching look at the welfare policies and reforms in the U.S. post-World War II.

“It was a six-year process,” Fording said. “What we generally found was that the policies we’ve enacted have made poverty worse, rather than better.”

Minority races, specifically blacks, face incredible challenges to escape poverty, which could include underemployment, earning money through extra-legal means, and higher consequences if caught committing crimes, he said.

“The fact is that the poor have the right to better opportunities, to work, and to live above the poverty line,” Fording said.

Books published in 2009, 2010 and 2011 were eligible for the 2015 award. The book, “Disciplining the Poor,” won in its first year of eligibility.

UA’s department of political science is part of the College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest liberal arts college in the state. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships, Truman Scholarships and memberships on the USA Today Academic All American Team.