Recent attention to literacy, rather than focusing on literacy for social mobility as in the 1960s, promotes literacy for basic, entry-level employment, a position that supports the existing power structure rather than redistributing power in our society. Therefore true universal literacy--which involves the potential redistribution of power--is being threatened in a number of ways: (1) nonliterate adults are being stereotyped as unable to grow and learn and barely able to cope with life; (2) nonliterate adults are being denied any active role in creating programs to meet their needs; (3) "literacy" resources are being used with adults whose skills already may be fairly sophisticated; and (4) workplace literacy programs sometimes simply train adults for specific tasks rather than help them learn to read, write, solve problems, and continue learning. The challenge for those who can influence the distribution of resources is to find some way to make a serious commitment to addressing literacy development as a complex issue, to stop putting social issues in competition with each other, and to work to promote a broad notion of literacy that embraces the growth of the human spirit, recognizing that full participation in the economy will accompany such personal growth. (NH)