Richard A. Cloward (1926–2001) was a sociologist, activist, author, and a professor at Columbia University’s School of Social Work. Cloward was a driving force behind the 1993 Motor Voter Act. In 1982, Cloward co-founded Human SERVE (Service Employees Registration and Voter Education) with his wife, Frances Fox Piven. The organization established motor-voter programs in selected states as precedents for the federal legislation. He was a catalyst in numerous protest movements on behalf of the poor. In 1966, he co-founded the National Welfare Rights Organization, which aimed to federalize Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) by building local welfare rolls. Cloward published numerous books, monographs and articles, including (with Frances Fox Piven) The Breaking of the American Social Compact (The New Press).