Aspects Of Class In The U.S.
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More Unequal:Aspects of Class in the United States, A summary.
We think of the United States today as the “the land of opportunity,” and yet the data backing this ideal is scarce. Research is pointing towards an increasingly solid separation of classes, and what’s more, a decrease in social mobility among them. The differences among classes spawn from a variety of life factors, but are largely based upon parents’ and even great grandparent’s socioeconomic status. (Foster 17) What is important to take away is not simply that we have unequal chances in the U.S; a deeper insight into the class system reveals its influence on who holds power, social change, and ultimately the quality of life for the majority of the population. In other words, all areas of our lives, in one way or another, are affected by class.
A major influence and deciding factor over government policy is and has been closely connected to class power. Policies are chosen based on what will benefit the dominating class, not the population as a whole. For example, Reagan during his term of office raised taxes for the majority of the population while drastically reducing taxes for the 20% of the population with the highest incomes. (Navarro 21)This is a trend that has ceased to fade away. Inequalities have been substantially increasing while poverty has also increased worldwide. (Navarro 24) This can be linked to the cutting of public funding, one of the ways neoliberal policies pushed for by the upper class have damaged the dominated classes who rely on public programs. (Navarro 25) Alliances formed within dominating classes in other states make influencing those in office a simple task. As mentioned above, the power that the rich hold is a major factor in
determining how other classes and groups operate. (Tabb 35) Our government has always been in favor of the rich. This is evident especially in the electing process. Many large corporations who want certain policies passed will pay large sums of money to elected officials, which helps to boost their campaigns to have policies passed in their favor. This is a never-ending process because in order to win an election, a candidate needs large amounts of money, and in order to obtain that, they must meet the needs of those supplying it, even if it is at the loss of the majority of the population’s best interest. There are many factors that are contributing to the rise of inequality, it is impossible to pinpoint any one cause that may eliminate this, but reducing inequality may be a reality that can be acted upon. Knowing some of these causes may be the first step.
With the rise in wealth of society’s richest members, the U.S is seeing a shrinking middle class. (Perelman 47) How is this possible? Many of these members are able to hide how much they are really making in order to avoid paying high taxes. This only hurts the rest of the population. The top 1% of households owns 40% of the financial wealth in all of the U.S. (Perelman 52) These growing inequalities make social mobility among classes increasingly difficult. With less tax money coming from the rich, programs designed to aid those wishing to get ahead and move up the ladder of success are being under-funded. With less from the rich, the pockets of ordinary Americans become heavier with the burden of tax, reinforcing the inequalities among classes.
One aspect not often looked upon in the economy today is the development of informal economies. Undocumented work has been on the rise for some time. Businesses take advantage of desperate immigrants who must accept any work they can find. (Vogel 58) Not only immigrants but natives to this country are involved in off-the-books labor. Since these workers do not receive any benefits or taxes, workers in the formal workforce suffer losses from unpaid payroll benefits and insurance which are needed to provide a safety net for workers. (Vogel 60) Inequality is also shown in women’s wages, which are less than half of what undocumented men make. (Vogel 62) This exploitation has become an important part of many cities economies, they’ve grown dependent upon it, and it is rapidly expanding throughout the U.S. With such dependence, it is nearly impossible to eliminate it.
Many people are quick to turn away when it comes to looking at race in relation to class structures and inequalities. In the U.S. today, a white family’s wealth is about ten times more than the wealth of a black family. (Roediger 68) This is a hard fact to ignore when discussing inequality among classes. In the book, After Race, it is examined that, “Race is a biological myth at long last invalidated by science, but now dangerously re-created because scholars persist in using the term.” (Roediger 73) Many authors also agree that a lack of attention to class is skewing the questions regarding all inequalities.(Roediger 74) There remains a distinct color-line that is adding to the growing race based global inequality. (Roediger 77)
An important example of the relation between class inequality and race is rooted deep within the history of New Orleans. The disastrous outcome of Hurricane Katrina left few wondering why blacks felt the biggest impact from the flooding. Many who owned homes in flood protected areas, mainly composed of white citizens, suffered less than the predominantly black poverty stricken areas not protected from the flooding. (Lavelle-Feagin 79)While social analysts wish to blame the issues in New Orleans on either race or class, the two are actually intertwined. (Lavelle-Feagin 80) New Orleans was once one of the biggest areas in the South in the slave trading industry. The white power holders of this era created a powerful system of slavery that formed the correlation between race and class still prevalent today. (Lavelle-Feagin 81) Many blacks living in the area today are descendants of these former slaves. Since the abolishment of slavery, one would think that many of the racist conditions had ceased to exist, but they have still held strong. After Katrina hit, it was due to economic conditions resulting from a long history of racial oppression that prevented many blacks from evacuating their homes,