UTAH’S WAR ON POVERTY: LOCAL PROGRAMS OF AND REACTIONS TO THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACT by Jennifer Sue Harward A dissertation submitted to the faculty of The University of Utah in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History The University of Utah May 2016 Copyright © Jennifer Sue Harward 2016 All Rights Reserved The University of Utah Graduate School STATEMENT OF DISSERTATION APPROVAL The dissertation of Jennifer Sue Harward has been approved by the following supervisory committee members: L. Ray Gunn , Chair 12-22-2015 Date Approved Susie S. Porter , Member 01-06-2016 Date Approved Elizabeth Clement , Member 12-22-2015 Date Approved Matthew Basso , Member 12-22-2015 Date Approved Ronald J. Hrebenar , Member Date Approved and by Isabel Moreira , Chair/Dean of the Department/College/School of History and by David B. Kieda, Dean of The Graduate School. ABSTRACT In August of 1964, Congress responded to President Lyndon B. Johnson’s declaration of War on Poverty, passing the Economic Opportunity Act (EOA). Three months later, Johnson secured a landslide victory for a second term, and for the last time in the twentieth century, the Utahns gave their electoral votes to a Democratic presidential candidate. From the very beginning, Utahns have had a complicated relationship with the federal government, insisting that federal officials leave them alone, while at the same time, benefitting greatly from many federal programs. Within the context of this complex history, this dissertation examines the implementation of the EOA antipoverty programs in Utah and analyzes how Utahns responded to them. Using Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) records, the public papers of elected officials, and newspaper coverage—both statewide and local—this study outlines how political and religious leaders and the general public responded to the EOA. The architects of the EOA established a number of programs to target the causes of poverty, and this dissertation describes the establishment of those programs in Utah and the local response to each. Individual chapters focus on the extent and nature of poverty in the state prior to the passage of the law and specific EOA programs designed to improve the lives of the state’s rural poor, including Native Americans and migrant workers, and the poor living in urban areas. Programs spotlighted include the Neighborhood Youth Corps, Volunteers in Service to America, Community Action Programs, Head Start, Upward Bound, Legal Services, and Job Corps, the largest and most economically significant EOA program in Utah. Though many expressed their dislike of federal involvement in social matters and of individual EOA programs, groups in the state applied for OEO aid and gradually established the full complement of programs to assist the poor. Whether they liked or disliked them, Utahns employed similar arguments as people across the nation to justify their feelings about each program. While the EOA did not end poverty in Utah, it succeeded in creating programs that improved the lives of many residents, and they continue to positively impact many people, more than fifty years later. iv In the immortal words of Paul McCartney: When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me Speaking words of wisdom, let it be… Thanks, Mom! TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………...………... iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………………………………………… vii Chapters 1 INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………...…... 1 2 THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACT AND THE “WAR ON POVERTY”: HISTORICAL ROOTS, DEBATES, AND CONTROVERSIES. 13 3 UTAH’S HISTORY: FEDERALISM, PUBLIC WELFARE, AND POLITICS—FROM THE TERRITORIAL PERIOD TO THE PASSAGE OF THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACT.………………………………... 76 4 THE NEED FOR THE EOA IN UTAH: POVERTY AND RACE…..……… 137 5 ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACT IN RURAL UTAH: PROGRAMS AND REACTIONS………………..……………………………………..…… 172 6 ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACT IN URBAN UTAH: PROGRAMS AND REACTIONS………………..………………………………….………. 227 7 JOB CORPS IN UTAH: LOCAL CENTERS AND PUBLIC REACTION…. 285 8 CONCLUSION…………..……………………………………………….…… 338 BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………...……………… 373 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My quest for a PhD in history officially began in the fall of 2008, but my academic journey began long before that, and I have incurred many debts along the way. Therefore, I am taking this opportunity to thank some of the most important people who helped me along the way. At the University of Utah, I wish to thank many individuals who made this process possible. As a history undergraduate, I had the privilege of taking Ron Coleman’s African American history course. It was a profound experience for me, and he is an exceptional teacher. I believe that he is a big part of why I came back to earn my master’s degree, and he also served on my master’s committee. Bob Goldberg is responsible for my continuation into the PhD program. When I asked him to serve as the chairman of my M.S. committee, he told me that he did not want to work with students seeking an M.S. degree, so I changed my degree. Without that change, I would not have been eligible for the PhD program. He fostered a sense of community among his graduate students, and it was during a presentation at his home that I became interested in the subject of this dissertation. Rebecca Horn was a fantastic professor who originally agreed to serve on my PhD committee. Although we decided that someone with a modern area of expertise might be more useful, given my research topic, she graciously introduced me to several VISTA volunteers, and so began my dissertation. I would like to thank my PhD committee—chair Ray Gunn, Ron Hrebenar, Susie Porter, Matt Basso, and especially Beth Clement, who often went above the call of duty for me. I appreciate your time and effort and all that you have done to make my dissertation better. I realize that I am definitely a nontraditional graduate student, and I appreciate their willingness to accept me into the program and work with me. Before I leave the history department, I would like to thank Karlton Munn and Amarilys Scott. Without their assistance, graduation would have been an impossibility. They had all the answers or knew where to find them. During my time working on this dissertation, I had the privilege of using the resources of many libraries and other repositories, and I benefitted from the knowledge of the people who worked in each. Thanks to the staffs of the National Archives in Denver, Kansas City, and College Park, the Utah Historical Society in Salt Lake City, the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University, and the Special Collections at the Stewart Library at Weber State University. For many years, the Marriott Library at the University of Utah became a home away from home for me. I would like to thank Walter Jones and Paul Mogren and their staff in the library’s Special Collections and Robert Behra and the ARC and Course Reserves staff for all of their help with the state’s newspapers. I never thought that I would say it, but I will actually miss spending time at the Marriott Library. I would also like to express my gratitude to the many individuals who shared their personal stories about the time that they were affiliated with EOA programs. My dissertation began as a study of the VISTA program in Utah, and my earliest research involved interviews with volunteers who served in Utah, many of whom chose to stay in the state. I appreciate Dan Johnson, Brian Watanabe, Al Church, Anne McGugin, Gregg viii Schiller, and David Nimkin for their time and their insight about VISTA. Those interviews were a highlight of this project. I wish to thank Cathy Hoskins who was the head of the SLCAP when I began collecting information about that organization. She not only provided a digital copy of the minutes of SLCAP meetings held during the time of this study but also suggested that I interview John Florez, one of the earliest and most influential CAP organizers in Utah. It was a privilege to meet Florez and hear his first- hand accounts of community organizing in Salt Lake City. I would not have completed this journey without the help and support of many friends and coworkers. Amy Ehresman has been my technology guru, providing invaluable assistance with Photoshop and Microsoft Word and assuring me that she would help me to take care of all formatting questions. Carla Money served as my “surrogate mother,” providing care, food, and even a blanket to keep her “purple friend” warm. Brad Dobson and Mylei Zachman frequently asked how things were going and commiserated or celebrated with me, whatever the situation called for. Since my junior year in high school, Kelly Oram has been a mentor and dear friend, and he showed his support of this project by giving me a Dr. J bobblehead doll to remind me of my end goal. Corine Barney shared her son’s struggles in his PhD program to remind me that I am not alone, and she gave me the Mickey Mouse flash drive that has housed my dissertation chapters once I got close to completion. Mickey and I have been inseparable for quite a while now. LeeAnn Hyer has always been supportive, listened as I complained, and loaned me the laptop that I have used during the last year of this project. Tracey Meade and Carrie Follett have often been on the “front lines” with me in this process. They seem to know when to ask me about my progress and when to avoid the subject. They ix understood that there were things that I could not do because of my commitment to this project and even accepted it when I stayed in the condo in Kona researching and writing about Mormon welfare policies while they went on an ocean cruise without me.