Take It From Me

Emily Abt's searing TAKE IT FROM ME tells the story of four women struggling to raise themselves and their families out of poverty in New York City. It is also an in-depth look at the 1996 Personal Responsibility Act and its five-year limit on public assistance. Abby is a 19-year-old mother of three who can't get an apartment of her own because she lives with her parents, who are welfare recipients. Teresa lives with her teenage son and may be mentally instable, which prevents restaurants from hiring her as a waitress. Iyoka, who has a community college education, and her husband Louis, who never finished school, are struggling to hold onto their marriage and the one job they are able to get between them. Valentina is a single mom and an ex-addict who is thankful for both her job as a dishwasher and her healthy kids, but who suffers fits of rage. TAKE IT FROM ME is a powerful film that lets the women speak for themselves, leaving the viewer to decide whether welfare reform has been successful and whether these families are better off for leaving public assistance. – B.B.