They're a success in most first world countries. Like health care, the US bungled the handling of it something awful. Still, there have been some successes. NYC

They're a success in most first world countries. Like health care, the US bungled the handling of it something awful. Still, there have been some successes. NYC's housing programs have been (for the US) relatively competent. This was in large part because they didn't do what another commenter wrote about chicago's system: corral all the poor people into a place with no transit so that the rich didn't have to look at them. NYC sprinkled its housing projects here and there, and it turned out much better (or at least, much less worse) as a result.