Comparing the affluent U.S. of today to the Titanic (which, as a luxury liner, nevertheless lacked lifeboats for steerage women and children), Sidel contends in

"Ruth Sidel revisits the condition of America's poor women, with particular focus on the federal government's attempts to dismantle the welfare system. She show

"It is 1912. Against all odds, the Titanic is sinking. As desperate hands emerge from the icy water, a few lucky row boats float in the darkness. On the boats a

Describes what happened to the Titanic survivors on that awful night and how the experience shaped their future lives.