The American Lie: Rugged Individualism and Welfare

In Milwaukee, 26-year-old mother Latricia Williams struggles to feed her ill four-month-old baby as costs for formula have risen to $75. In the Phoenix valley, the Villa family is stretched thin, utilizing social security checks that no longer cash in. In Orlando, Florida, Larry Robinson patiently waits for food benefits that may never arrive. All across America, the government shutdown has left 42 million Americans unsure of when their next meal will be. Even as the courts order full payments of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to continue, the Trump administration has only partially complied. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt issued a statement a few days ago claiming, "The recipients of the SNAP benefits need to understand it's going to take some time to receive this money". That's time that citizens like Latricia Williams, the Villa family, and Larry Robinson can't afford. However, today's ongoing issues surrounding welfare highlight a much larger problem prevalent throughout all of American history. Rugged individualism, the idea that each individual can succeed on their own without government help, is a philosophy many Americans subscribe to, even at the cost of their own livelihoods.

As Americans moved westward in the 1800's, many believed they could carve out a new life for themselves without depending on government support, leading to a culture of independence. Moreover, politicians like Herbert Hoover, Ronald Reagan, and J.D Vance have consistently condemned the idea of constituents relying on the government for help. Repeatedly, these politicians tell us to "pull yourself up by your bootstraps". However, doing so is physically impossible. Similarly, plenty of Americans cannot simply help themselves. For example, ten years ago, Sophia Fuller couldn't feed herself or her son. Without any help, she struggled to make ends meet. But the first time she used SNAP benefits, she felt shameful. American society, through centuries of purposeful messaging, has disparaged welfare recipients as "lazy" or "not hard-working". For Food Stamps user Whitney Lee, she thought it would be better to be dead than on welfare. The idea of Rugged Individualism is an orchestrated lie that leads to death.

The ongoing social welfare crisis caused by the government shutdown should compel us to critique the system overall. If a shutdown can be so catastrophic as to leave millions without food for a month, then is our system really effective? The answer is no. Welfare has become increasingly privatized as corporations realize there's money to be made from poverty. Indeed, fulfilling the narrative of rugged individualism, the government hands off its duties to private companies. Nearly 1 trillion dollars from the federal government goes into antipoverty programs. However, instead of directly helping its citizens, the government pays corporations to carry out its wishes. Although public-private partnerships occur across multiple sectors, such as housing, criminal justice, and nutrition, the easiest to understand is healthcare. For-profit companies are middlemen in providing healthcare services like Medicare or Medicaid. For example, Maximus, a private company receiving government contracts, routinely prioritizes "efficiency over lives". When Tennessee partnered with Maximus, the number of uninsured children increased by nearly 23 percent. In Kansas, a similar story. That's because for-profit companies like Maximus deny claims to squeeze out more money from their government contract. The fewer people they treat, the more money they make. But doesn't the federal government end its partnership with Maximus if the company is so ineffective in its provider care? $1,137,500. That was the total lobbying expenditure for Maximus in 2024. But it's not just healthcare. Corporate middlemen are occupying social services to a much wider extent.

Yes. America's flawed system of welfare shouldn't be a signal of despair. Instead, it should be a monument to resilience. Through community-based organizing, Americans have broken past the lie of rugged individualism. Today, as SNAP funding is cut, thousands of local organizations, schools, and non-profits have ran food-drives, feeding welfare recipients.