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Junior Partner or Empowered Community? The Role of Non-profit Social Service Providers amidst State Restructuring in the US

Department of Geography, Macalester College, 1600 Grand Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota, 55105, United States, trudeau{at}macalester.edu

Public—private partnerships have excited discussion about the possibilities of creating a more responsive welfare state in contemporary American society that empowers local communities. Sceptics see these partnerships as inherently unequal such that non-profit organisations play `junior partner' to government agencies by prioritising governments' agendas. This paper contributes to the debate by examining the role of non-profit organisations that work with government agencies to provide social services. It is argued that non-profits attempt to balance both roles—playing `junior partner' and empowering community. The experiences and practices of non-profits thus show that the role of non-profits amidst state restructuring is to negotiate the multiple obligations they have to funding agencies and local communities that seek assistance. The paper draws on a case study of non-profits providing social services to immigrant and refugee communities in Minneapolis—St Paul in order to develop the argument.

Urban Studies, Vol. 45, No. 13, 2805-2827 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0042098008098207


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