Moore champions welfare rights

Sentinel correspondent

Madison From the poorhouse to the statehouse is not just a campaign slogan to State Sen. Gwendolynne S. Moore. The Milwaukee Democrat has made the journey in person.

One of nine children, Moore's father was an unskilled factory worker and her mother was a public school teacher.

Moore knew poverty firsthand and was on welfare when she was 18 years old and gave birth to her first child.

Moore, 43, eventually graduated from North Division High School and earned a bachelor of arts degree in political science at Marquette University. She went on to become the first black woman elected to the State Senate and says her upbringing gives her a unique perspective into the problems of low-income urban residents.

"Seeing what my mother accomplished (graduating summa cum laude from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee) helped form for me a healthy view of poor people," Moore said. "So many of my colleagues have an unhealthy view of poor people."

That unhealthy view has translated into an onslaught of legislation aimed at "bashing welfare recipients," Moore said.

"Too many people feel that where you start out dictates where you should end up," Moore said. "I was on welfare and just shy of 19 when my first daughter was born, but I was encouraged to take advantage of my intelligence and continued in school. I have contributed more in taxes and productivity than I took. I was worth it, everyone is."

Moore disputes the idea that people are poor by choice.

A changing economy can transform a well-paid factory employee into a struggling service worker overnight, she said.

Moore has joined other senators this legislative session seeking funding to retrain Milwaukeeans laid off by plant closings and has also worked to broaden economic opportunity by ending patterns of lending discrimination and providing affordable housing for low-income people.

"I'm for creating an environment where business can thrive. I don't know if I'll ever be the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce Association Legislator of the Year, but they will tell you I'm a thoughtful person who casts votes that will enhance and improve business' ability to function, Moore said.

Even those who oppose Moore's philosophy say they have a personal admiration for her.

"I think of her as a model of a woman who has been able to accomplish so much. She has the admiration of legislators on both sides of the aisle for doing that," said Sen. Peggy Rosenzweig (R- Wauwatosa).

Moore impressed many other associates while working for the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Association and later serving as the Assembly's representative on the WHEDA board.

Richard Longabaugh, WHEDA's executive director, remembers Moore as being an informed and able board member who did her homework, asked tough questions and kept the staff on their toes.

"She wasn't a rubber stamp approving projects the staff proposed," Longabaugh said. "She was helpful in launching a program that helps low-income individuals acquire property in Milwaukee's central city. Her strong background in housing issues was an asset to her work on the board."

Moore resigned her WHEDA board position when she was elected to the Senate in 1992.

Moore said she believes those who want to eliminate public assistance have unfairly characterized welfare recipients as immoral or indecent people.

"I wasn't immoral or indecent while on welfare," she said. "America works when it offers opportunity equally to all and not just the socially or economically advantaged."

A legislative assault on "the safety net" of social programs, as well as a paucity of other legislators willing to take up the challenge, has thrust Moore into the role of champion of the welfare recipient.

Moore, in a recent senate committee meeting, cast the lone vote against a bill that would deny an increase in welfare benefits to mothers who have additional children.

A year ago, Moore opposed a similar measure on the floor of the Senate, and her reading from Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist" lead to a memorable debate, said Margaret McMurray, past state president of the Wisconsin National Organization for Women.

"Other senators were trying to gavel her down, but she read some real moving passages about the work houses in Victorian England and said this is where we're headed with this kind of legislation. She best understands the punitive results these measures will have on poor people and their families," said McMurray, whose organization honored Moore in February as NOW's Feminist of the Year.

Moore recalled that day and said senators who voted against later said she had made a positive impression on them.

Moore hopes those same senators will have open minds when planning and discussing the future needs of Wisconsin residents.

"I will try to get the majority party to try and see that universal, publicly funded education two years beyond high school is needed for people to compete in a modern economy," Moore said.

Although she has championed welfare rights by necessity, Moore came to the Assembly in 1988 to broaden economic opportunities for all low-income individuals.

With a background in community credit unions and housing development, Moore said she would prefer to remedy poverty through work, not welfare.

"If the government would make a commitment to provide adequate child care, public transportation and health insurance for persons with low incomes, I would lead the parade down Pennsylvania Avenue to end welfare," the senator said. "Those benefits will cost money, but until we're able to do those things, I will not forego the safety net assistance programs provide."

Moore said an early love of foreign languages was sparked by a curiosity in other people's cultures.

She still prides herself on being able to transcend race, gender and partisanship to communicate with people on important issues in her culturally diverse district that includes parts of Glendale, Shorewood and Milwaukee.

"No matter how different people look, they are really alike in their wants. Parents want to be able to give a Barbie doll or Tonka truck to their children as well as provide them with educational opportunities. The barriers we create are artificial and I'm driven to go beyond the labels that others have tried to put on me," Moore said.

Copyright 1995
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