Adhanet Kidane, 30, a single mother in Tampa, Fla., earns minimum wage at two fast-food restaurants. Photo: Edward Linsmier/New York Times
by Dionnne Searcey and Robert Gebeloff New York Times January 25, 2015
The middle class that President Obama identified in his State of the Union speech last week as the foundation of the American economy has been shrinking for almost half a century....
Lamar Smith, a case worker with the city-contracted nonprofit Community of Hope, does a walk-through in mid-December with Timika Holiday, 29, a formerly homeless mother of two, at her home in the District. Photo: Evelyn Hockstein/Washington Post
by Robert Samuels Washington Post January 17, 2015
Sometimes, he just hopes they’ll open the door. But the prospect seemed unlikely on this cloudy morning as Lamar Smith, 36, approached the brick walk-up. The lights were off, the blinds closed; no sign of anyone in this Southeast Washington home....