Re: Knowledge is Power

In “Knowledge is Power”, Maria Cristina Rangel talks about her experiences with welfare programs as a woman.  One of the most problematic aspects of welfare programs in our country that Rangel takes up issue with is that they blame the individual for not taking responsibility for him or herself.  In the case of women, this message is particularly pronounced when children are involved.  Women often times are targeted by welfare programs to feel ashamed about their unfortunate situation or to feel as if they are trying to cheat the system altogether.  At the same time, there are, “systematic factors like poor public education, little job training for displaced workers, low wages and lack of affordable childcare,” that contribute to the high percentage of poor women (192). 

When Rangel says that “knowledge is power”, she is referring to the fact that in order to be self-sufficient and independent, as the welfare programs promote, you have to be educated.  Rangel acknowledges that although she suffers from the welfare system, she has more of an advantage over women who are not as privileged.  Unfortunately, many women do not have the four-year college education that Rangel has and are pitted against the system more drastically.  Rangel offers a few solutions to this problem, such as thinking about long-term improvements for women and keeping race, class, gender, and sexuality in mind when doing so.  Furthermore, she calls on institutions of higher education to recognize that they are not giving an entire segment of the population access to a better education that “traditional students” receive.  Rangel sees the worth in the education she has received and the effects of her education on her children.  It is for this reason that Rangel hopes to see a new system that provides equal access to education for all women, regardless of their income, and a welfare system aims to really help women instead of degrading them for their own livelihood.