The Truly Disadvantaged: the inner city, the underclass, and public policy.

The Truly Disadvantaged (1987) is a seminal book by sociologist William Julius Wilson that examines the causes of concentrated poverty in American inner cities, arguing that structural economic changes, such as deindustrialization and job loss, are the primary drivers, rather than cultural deficiencies or solely racial factors. Wilson critiques both conservative and liberal approaches to poverty, advocating for race-blind public policies and comprehensive economic strategies to address the decline of inner-city communities and foster opportunities for the urban underclass