There are many aspects to our identities, individually, as communities, and as a nation. Some are much more visible than others. We have discussed race and ethnicity which has been used to identify, separate and discriminate in various ways through American history. Often people are identified in ways other than how they would identify themselves and other times people from marginalized communities have attempted to “pass” as those in a favored group. Among many aspects of our identities, class is central, but is less obvious to many. However our class inequalities as a society are just as stark. First remind yourself what income levels fall under the institutionally constructed definition of “poverty” here. Next explore some statistics from the U.S. Census breaking down the numbers and percentages of those in poverty by age, race, and Hispanic origin here: Table 3. Poverty Status of People, by Age, Race, and Hispanic Origin. Pay careful attention to the percentage of those under 18 are growing up in poverty and how those numbers vary by race.
There are shocking correlations between race, ethnicity, and
class, however, extreme poverty along with those living above the poverty line
but still struggling mightily to provide for their families affects people
living all around the country, regardless of race, national origin, or ethnicity.
And it impacts our politics, policies, and political views in many ways. Some have read
Hillbilly Elegy for other classes which talk about this phenomenon at length.
I am interested to hear your thoughts about class inequality, and
whether or not the government should play a different, greater, or smaller role
in trying to alleviate it. But more important, I am wondering how
you are socialized to think about class. Is it something that has been made visible to you through social groups, your communities, schools, organizations,
friends, family, representations on media? Have you been socialized to understand the full range of class in America? Or has class remained a largely invisible
issue for you. How should we think about it in terms of American identity and
our relationship with our local, state, or national government?
I believe that the government should play a larger role in alleviating class inequality. Government reducing federal oversight has allowed the exploitation of the employee by the employer. The stigma and reducing access to unions has also contributed to the employee being forced to work harder for less in many instances (not to say there are no negatives to unions). I have been socialized to think about class visibly through college, working with my church on mission trips, and the media. Although minority portrayal in the media is low, it is far greater than my high school's 7 percent minority enrollment. College has been the most diverse setting (especially academic) I've been placed in. DePaul University and Chicago itself have expanded my experiences with members of different economic 'classes.' I don't think I've been socialized to understand the full range of class in America, but it also isn't invisible to me. Having said that, I don't think anyone even if they have studied class to a great extent can fully understand the range and differences. Growing up very rich or very poor and spending your life studying the others history, life, socialization, etc. is not the same as living/growing up in it. Because of this, it is a constant that must be thought about and acknowledged. We should think about class in terms of being central to our American identity. Especially as we get closer to the 'minority-majority' date it is becoming a greater portion of our identity.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the government is responsible to play a larger role in alleviating class inequalities. Even from our discussion of class, it seems that class inequality is even prevalent in our government as there is more upper-class politicians rather than the others.
DeleteFor the longest time, I never discussed or even gave much thought as to class and what impact that has on my life. From growing up in the suburbs of Albany and Pittsburgh, the discussion of class was never mentioned because of my age (as I was only in elementary school) but also that there was not much of a distinct difference of class within my neighborhood. Everyone had similar homes and seemed to have similar economic lives. It was not until I moved to Chicago, in which class became more visible to me. Through interactions of students from school and people I worked with, I became ore aware of the significant differences of class in America. Through personal interactions with people who came from different classes, helped me understand that the class situation was far more complex. I had the naïve understanding that the majority of Americans were of middle-class and there were only a small amount of lower and upper. However, now taking courses that discuss class in America and thinking about my own future after college makes class extremely visible to me. I think Americans are visible to class but would rather chose to ignore it rather than address it.
Class is probably one of the hidden identities in the U.S. People grow up often not privy to the other class groups around them because their life is full of people in that same class group. The neighborhoods we live, the schools we attend, and people we interact with are all based around class. When watching entertainment media the people being presented are either of upper-middle class to upper class status. For people, living in those groups how could they think that anything else exist. When I was being socialized to class, I remember knowing that my grandmother lived in on “bad” part of town while I didn’t. I knew that some schools were considered “bad” schools based on their location. What was never explicitly stated to me was that all these “bad” places happened to be in low income areas. It was until I reached high school and began interacting with students from all around my city that I started to make these connections.
ReplyDeleteI can’t imagine what it would be like to a person from a lower income area. The only they are every presented is negatively. News paints out low-income people to be uncultured, uneducated people who are helpless. Politicians have made out low income people to freeloaders who are trying to get the government to fix their problems from them. The only time that low income people seem to worthy of any positive treatment is when they have “pulled themselves up by their bootstraps” in a rag to riches story. For all the people living in poverty under 18, that’s the only they can seem themselves mattering. Unfortunately to the lack of economic mobility available in the U.S. that is unlikely to happen.
Breya, I like your point about entertainment media displaying people of higher classes explicitly while not even recognizing anyone else. I feel the same is true about how entertainment media attempts to make a correlation between class and race. Watch any crime show (or any in general) and the suspects are generally of color, and from low income areas. I believe that not only can the government do more to change this issue and narrative, but media outlets need to do the same and stop feeding into narratives that attribute race to class.
DeleteI think that both of your points about the portrayal of low income people in media and by some politicians are completely accurate. Portraying low income people as freeloaders, lazy, or as criminals is truly troubling, because there are a good amount of people who believe what they hear on TV without much question. When class and race interplay, we create a complicated system of racism and classism that only helps perpetuate those stereotypes.
DeleteThe story of someone "pulling themselves up by their bootstraps" is not uncommon--this is exactly what my father had to do when he moved here from India--but no one person faces exactly the same set of obstacles as another person. So to use the story of "bootstraps" in media while juxtaposed to stories of low income people who are still suffering is essentially using the same divisive tool as the "model minority" stereotype--it's often used to say, "If this person can do it, why can't this other person do the same thing?" Life, unfortunately, is not so easily generalized.
This is why I think the government should play a bigger role in easing poverty. Creating a more equal society will require economic changes--maybe the tax code, maybe redistribution, maybe more social programs, it's up for debate--but it will certainly also require a concerted effort on the part of activists to call out how low income people are represented in the media, to call out stereotypes in general. Social media can play a huge role in this, and has before on other issues of representation.
Putting more realistic images of low income lives in media, especially media geared towards teen audiences, could have a positive effect of dispelling myths that surround low income people. This could socialize people to think about class at an early age, and not to stereotype people from low income groups. There are already some shows, both old and current, that have taken a stab at this, although they're not perfect (Riverdale, Freaks and Geeks, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Friday Night Lights). More of these types of shows (that would ideally also feature more people of color) could be useful in fighting stereotypes, making people think about class, and hopefully paving the way for change in the future.
The concept class is a tricky subject for Americans to talk about. We pride ourselves on changing the definition of class. Historically, class was a very concrete identity — if you’re born in the middle class, you’ll die in the middle class. There’s no chance of upward mobility. This is less so the case in America. We’re socialized less around the concept of class and are given less clear meanings on how each class is defined.
ReplyDeleteI actually just finished reading Hillbilly Elegy for my capstone class, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed his narrative. While he does make a few general and extreme conclusions about conditions in America compared to the rest of the world, his personal story reveals a lot about the struggles families of this demographic face. What really surprised me was how little he had to say about government aid and American exceptionalism overall. There’s really only one section of the book where he talks about how he was raised to faithfully love and respect the country, despite the hardships he faced. This perspective didn’t seem to change despite his higher education and new knowledge of wealth inequality and how the country failed him and his family. Maybe his opinion didn’t change because of his bootstraps success and the comparatively fewer obstacles he had/has in his path, but I thought it was interesting that he didn’t touch on the subject again at the end of his book.
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ReplyDeleteI feel the government should play a greater role in alleviating class inequality because reading about some of the privileges that the upper classes give me concerns that our government is not doing much to equal classes.
ReplyDeleteI have been socialized to think about class by seeing my extended family and by comparing my life compared to their lives. I started to understand that my family was a bit better off compared to my aunts, uncles, and cousins based off how different our lifestyles were. I remember how difficult it was for my older cousins to achieve academic success compared to me because it seemed I had more resources to achieve success compare to them. I also have been socialized to think about class by a friend I had based off the distance we both had to travel to get to school in a suburban town called Glenview. My family was able to afford housing near the school, but my friend’s family could not. He had to take the Metra from uptown Chicago to get to school.
I would say that I understand a decent range of classes, but I’m not certain if my knowledge of the upper or lower class is accurate. I am suspicious of the source of my understanding of these two classes because my knowledge of these two come from the media, which can sometimes exaggerate certain categories of difference.
I agree with you in that government should play a larger role in helping with class inequality. I think a strong example of US government involvement in helping with economic class, is when Franklin Delano Roosevelt came into office following the Great Depression and enacted the "New Deal" which helped eased economic hardships through policy/legislations and creation of jobs.
DeleteThroughout my life I have always noticed how some people always had it "easier" than others. Some kids always had the newest nicest clothes, the brand new phone, or the nicest sporting equipment. While other kids had to deal with hand me downs, or clothes that weren't as nice. From a young age humility and social awareness has always been taught to me. To lend a helping hand when I can, and to realize that not everyone is the same.
I think class role is an issue that the government should be willing and is completely capable playing a role in order to alleviate the inequality gap among certain groups. Class has been something I picked up more from school and friends. In my high school teachers tried to push the ideas of the inequality that is in America though many students would just shrug it off and say it doesn’t matter to me because I am not part of it. And for a good amount of time of my schooling I was just putting it on the back burner of something I knew but never used. It wasn’t until I came to college and starting writing a number of papers on the income inequality this issue started to actually become something I care a lot about. When looking at the pay gaps just among non-white citizens the difference in numbers are shocking and the fact that nothing has been done is extremely shocking. In terms of American identity there is something the government at all levels can do in order to stop the bleeding a bit, even a few simply policy changes to shift the income to those who take the hardest hit. Little steps to start helping those at the bottom can slowly take the inequality of the class and start helping them get back on their feet.
ReplyDeleteI think the concept of class differences first became something I was aware of when I was a kid, but I didn't really have the name for it. It usually just came in me thinking that "huh, this neighborhood has smaller houses than my neighborhood" or asking my parents why this friend of mine couldn't afford something, and my parents would always tell me to never bring that kind of stuff up in public, because it's something people don't want to discuss or it would be embarrassing. Now that I'm older, I've come to understand that economic inequality is one of the biggest issues facing this country and can also affect numerous other issues, such as education, and I absolutely think that the government needs to do something more to help fix it, because it would not only make the country a better place, but would lessen the resentment and feeling of abandonment that several facets of the country feels towards the government and politicians. Perhaps these policies could call back to LBJ's attempted policies in his War on Poverty, which never got as far as it should've due to politics and the Vietnam War, perhaps they are more progressive or socialist-minded, or perhaps they're something no one has ever tried before. Either way, I think the issue needs to be handled so people don't have to make budget plans per month just to survive, in supposedly the greatest country in the world.
ReplyDeleteI think your comment about your childhood brings an interesting idea that I never thought about, which is how proper manners can affect how we view class. Your experience of your parents telling you to not bring up class and inequality reminded me of how I was taught it is impolite to point at one's imperfections. I think a person's shortcomings can include their class, which makes me believe we have been taught at an early age to not talk about class since it is considered rude.
DeleteI also agree with you that if the government can fix inequality, then it could lead to Americans to place more faith in the government. You’re correct that there has been a lot of resentment and negative feelings of the government. This resentment has a serious effect on Americans by how we have focus more on the government’s cons. The government should take action to redeem its reputation.
Oh yeah, your parents' values that they taught you about other people's shortcomings are similar to what mine taught me. Though I think that sometimes (or even most of the time) someone's class isn't exactly their fault, it could be because of institutional or societal barriers, such as discrimination based on race or whatever else. But I agree with you nonetheless, Vincent.
DeleteAs a kid, I was never really introduced to the idea of there being a class system involving different tiers that include groups of people. I grew up with the idea that there were those who were more fortunate and those who were less fortunate. However, my parents always emphasized (like most parents would) that you should always be grateful for what you have. They also encouraged me to always give to those who are less fortunate. In high school, I started to really understand the distinctions amongst classes and inequality through current events classes I took. I gained a greater insight that this is a greater issue than what I perceived it to be. I think the government can play a critical role in fixing this issue. Through their involvement, steps can be taken to somehow ease the situation more. I also see individuals can play just as an important role in helping.
ReplyDeleteClass is subject that I feel is not talked about often, or at least as often as it should be. As one of our readings mentioned, the middle class is the only time we really every bring up the idea of class. Brining up other sectors of class isn’t something people really do, as it is believed to be an uncomfortable kind of topic. I think, as someone brought up in class, that is a little harder to decipher class just by looking at groups of people. I think a lot of people would consider themselves a part of the middle class, but because they don’t really know what constitutes the ‘middle class’. It’s just a term we hear a lot to mean average, not living paycheck to paycheck, etc. But I was never taught exactly how to think about or understand class through socialization, and really only ever learned more about it through history classes and looking back at different classes throughout time. I feel that class isn’t something that is very apparent, you have to find out quite a bit of information about someone before you can really know what class they may be a part of – it’s not something you can just see. Though class has been discussed in a lot of my classes and becomes a major issue in which problems are mobilized through, I think to many people this is still an invisible concept. I think there are many people who may find this topic uncomfortable and feel better about their own status by not discussing it.
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ReplyDeleteDisparities in class has a great impact on our country in many aspects. Lower class communities often struggle to get the state or federal resources that they need, from a lack of schools/shutting down schools and colleges in low income areas, to “food deserts” that prevent these communities from eating healthier and less costly food, which directly affects the ability of those in that area to create a better life for themselves and their family. Not only does it affect their ability to find success, it also creates issues with health care and the spread of disease, and often times, lower class communities are subjected to environmentally hazardous production and waste, furthering sickness within these communities. I could go on and on about how class affects every aspect of one’s life in America, but I certainly agree that the government CAN and SHOULD do more to eliminate the huge gaps in class that have kept the status quo of who succeeds and who does not. In terms of thinking about class, when I was younger, it was simply a case of “poor or not”, and I learned these things through TV and interactions at school. For example, a student in school who receives free lunches is automatically placed in the lower class category, the same is applied for almost every human characteristic, and eventually, through the television and the media, I found myself more and more unjustly attributing class to race. Nowadays, class is certainly not an invisible issue for me, especially living in Chicago and having the life experiences that I have now. However, that is not the case for many Americans, and I believe that by educating people on class early on, as well as racial stereotyping would be a good start to curb the ideas that people grow up with about class.
I think the way we are socialized to talk about class is very different from the other social constructions in society. Growing up, I was always told to never talk about how much money my family makes and to never ask about how much somebody else makes. I was never even told how much my parents made until I was in high school. I still find it hard to understand why this isn't something that's okay to talk about and wonder how it was socialized to be this way. Regarding the government being included in discussion about class, I think it's necessary. After looking at all of the statistics, there's a clear correlation between skin color and amount of money. One of the statistics that shocked me the most was the fact that 21% of black people 65 years and older are living below the poverty line. That's nearly a quarter of that population. If there were more government programs available, perhaps class racism wouldn't exist.
ReplyDeleteI think class racism is institutionalized. Especially since people of color were denied loans for homes after the second world war. This forced people of color into cities where they were not able to have a house that would eventually increase in value and give them something to cash in later. Class and institutionalized racism go together, especially in terms of promoting social mobility.
DeleteI do think that the government needs to do more to about inequality, more specifically income inequality. I think the best way would be through taxes, such as the buffet rule which was at least a 30% tax on the income and capital gains of anyone making more than 1 million a year. Economist have even said it could be a higher, 40 or 50% while not stunting economic growth. Class was always something that was made visible to me, particularly thought my father. He was born poor or borderline poor and ‘pulled himself up by his bootstraps” to move up classes. But regardless I do agree with the black and white nature to which we view wealth. Your either poor or not poor. And I fear this limits our understanding of the struggles of the lower middle classes, who may not be poor, but still struggle. Class inequality has been fundamental in our understanding of our American identity. We have almost viewed yourself as a society without class, as we compared ourselves to the European autocracies and because we had such great upward mobility, which allowed one person to break through to another class.
ReplyDeleteClass inequality seems to be of great concern, especially in a country like the United States. The U.S. at some point was recognized as a country of equal opportunity, however according to percentages, the rich become richer and the poor continue to be poor. As for the government, many believe that something needs to be done to alleviate the issue, except there is only so much the government can do. A term commonly used Laissez-Faire which translates to “let do” is a term used to let the economy do what it does (leave it alone). Due to Globalization the 1% in the country has been able to exponentially increase their profits. Globalization has created better relationships with other countries due to capitalism, however since work is given to those who charge less, jobs in this country are lost. Since globalization cannot be stopped the government should do something to enforce policies and laws on trading and tariffs. From what I have learned in the past, upward mobility in class is very difficult although in the U.S. it should be much easier. It has been visible through classes I have taken and personal experience. Class is something I have been aware of since history at a young age, it is something repeated often in education. Class is something important to American identity. We might not want to be in our current situation in terms of class, however we should work on strengthening our middle class and diminishing the lower class in terms or size. As a country it would make our economy stronger and it would make it easier for the poor to access upward mobility which can in turn can benefit all races that have been associated with poverty in America.
ReplyDeleteClass disparity has been a constant in the history of the United States. It is the capitalistic system that has been in place since the beginning, that year after year, the people in power just stay in power and misuse their status, that are so reluctant to change, so this void just gets bigger and bigger. I grew up in a suburban area in Illinois and moved to Los Angeles when I was in 7th grade. This transition woke me up like nothing else in my life and educated me on the actual disparity. I went from content with everything in my life to almost thinking my family was lower middle class at that time. Everyone around me was wearing the newest clothing, driving the newest cars, and eating the best food. I had to realize that people who are rich just stay rich, they are surrounded by people that are the same and only benefit one another. This ingrained state of disparity can only be deteriorated with the change of beliefs of individuals within each class. It is almost impossible these days to see any or very little upward mobility in the middle class.
ReplyDeleteI think the government should play a role in narrowing the gap between the top and bottom earners of this country. It is ludicrous to hear complaints of higher taxes among those who make and have vast wealth when there are large numbers of Americans struggling to make ends meet. I was first socialized to the reality of the class divide in school, as I attended public schools where students from all manner of backgrounds attend. I was first truly exposed to this reality in middle school, when a friend of mine and I had a discussion on the differences in our lives based on the money our parents had. As Americans we should always consider class in our lives, specifically our place in the world and the fact that there are plenty of others that are less fortunate than us. I also think we should work with our different levels of government to develop ways in which those with more economic freedom can help those with less.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your belief that the government should play a role in narrowing the gap. I think that there are a lot of steps that could be taken to do so, but it isn't the governments main priority so the gap remains pretty consistent. Where I grew up, everyone was part of the upper-class. There was no class diversity, so everybody was pretty much blind to the economic inequalities that existed in the rest of the world. It wasn't until I grew older that I began to understand that the rest of the world is completely different than mine, and that what they consider to be wealthy, people from my community considered to be poor. It's definitely important to acknowledge the inequalities that exist in the world and to consider how someones economic status may play into their every day life.
DeleteClass disparity has very much become a part of the American Identity. People and politicians especially have used this as a way to feel what people call the "American Dream," which in most cases has become an attempt to move class status. People have used the "American Dream" as an excuse to address the issue of how bad the disparity has gotten and not find a fix. I believe that the government does need to get involved in order to fix the distribution. This is not to say that they have to continue to be involved, the government will just have to use a heavy hand to fix the issue now and create laws that can withstand years and keep the class system in a more managed system. How to do this I have not figured out yet, but I assume will end up relying heavily on taxes and redistribution of the funds.
ReplyDeleteInequality is a struggle that has defined every generation from the dawn of time. The rich have oppressed the poor, and when it gets to oppressive the poor rebel. The United States is no exception: the founding fathers vs. King George; Andrew Jackson vs. Samuel Adams; Slaves vs. the slave owners; progressives vs. monopolies; the 99% vs. the 1%. Human history has existed in inequality, and we need to address it. Democracy created an opportunity for the poor to have the equal voice to the rich. People sort themselves into the rich and the poor. The second video we watched this week showed that people from all the quintiles move around. However, it only addressed the income and not the wealth. While income may fluctuate, wealth accumulates, and the rich only get richer. The US needs a progressive income and inheritance tax. If this inequality continues much further the rich will become unassailable. The people of the United States need to stop the inequality gap before it becomes the Grand Canyon.
ReplyDeleteClass inequality in America has contributed to the erosion of a national identity because it affects a person’s ability to effect political change in the country and to relate to each other’s struggles. Poor undereducated Americans have a harder time influencing government, and their lack of representation in the government leads to more discrimination and inequality. Also, poverty is usually a racial issue as black and Hispanic families find themselves living under the poverty line way more often than white families (percentage wise), so the growing inequality gap consolidates the marginalization of minority communities as kids born into this reality have to overcome an opportunity gap to achieve class mobility. I think the government has the responsibility to create legitimate opportunities for the lower classes that make up for the great influence of interest groups that are usually favoring the upper classes. I didn't grow up in the United States, but Brazil is a Third-World country plagued by great inequality so I have always perceived the range of class as generally either really poor or really rich. My view of American class range is that it might be wide, but also pretty consistent so people (for better or worse) know exactly what to expect of their lives in that social class.
ReplyDeleteI think that how you conceptualize class probably has a lot to do with the circumstances you are brought up in and the location you are brought up in. For instance, I attended private school my whole life. While some might say that this could contribute to a misunderstanding about poverty and true class disparity, I attended this private school in a small rural town that contained those on all ends of the class spectrum. Therefore I was immersed in and learned about circumstances of almost every class of citizen. However thinking about some of the private schools near me that were more in the suburbs/affluent areas, they may have not been as exposed to this disparity. So therefore there will have to be multiple levels of analysis in determining how class is thought of by an individual.
ReplyDeleteAlso while thinking about my conceptualization of class I could not help but think about my Catholic upbringing. While I do not think of myself as particularly religious anymore, Catholicism certainly instilled in me ideas about always extending a hand to the poor and that those at the lowest points in society are deserving of dignity and charity. In other words, my Catholic schooling made sure I was aware of the different conditions of those in our society. So perhaps religion is a socializing factor in this regard--certainly the communities associated with it are.
Classism is certainly a construct that continues to plague the United States, where it is prominent in realms such as the neighborhood in which one resides, grocery and clothing stores, educational opportunities, and even extends to an individual's behaviors and mental frameworks regarding certain issues. Similar to the notion presented by Rameez Kahn, I feel as if class was always a foreign concept during my younger years. Upon progressing through junior high and high school, it became more evident that this was classism was an oppressive system, most often imposed upon the wealthy of upper-middle class, at the expense of the lower class. A sad reality that must be addressed, too, is the tendency for this system to remain invisible or disregarded by those who benefit from it, while those that it takes a toll upon endure its challenges each day. I also share in the experience with Breya when she elaborates upon the partition among the "good" and "bad" areas comprising a town: schools, convenience stores, neighborhoods, parks, etc. I became socialized with the notion of classism when I had met a student from a junior high on the other side of the city in which I grew up. We shared a common interest, and in doing so became members of the same city-wide organization. After showing my parents the invitation that he had given me to RSVP for his birthday, I was unpleased with their response which encompassed the basic idea of "We're so sorry sweetie, we don't feel comfortable with you being in that neighborhood". As I touched on before, this is a sad reality that our society must face, and it certainly won't undergo change without a loosened grip on class mobility.
ReplyDeleteI think the government needs to do more to fight wealth inequality and narrow the gap between the richest and poorest Americans. Taxes on the wealthy would be helpful, but ensuring that different loopholes are closed would also lessen the tax burden on lower and middle income Americans. With the current government controlled by Republicans, increasing taxes at all, specifically on the upper class, will not happen. I grew up lower middle class and in an area where the rich kids were made up of Blue collar workers. Very few people from my high school actually went to college on top of that, since it was not something they could afford. I think my exposure to economic socialization happened when I started to attend elementary school. I slowly started to notice why some kids had the 64 pack of crayons and why others did not. Class was something I had noticed in school and in my community, since my parents would often have to drive long distances to get to grocery stores, or shopping malls. However, class struggles were not addressed in a scholarly way until high school, specifically in my AP European History course. Even then, it was not fully analyzed through the lens of race. Overall, the government needs to do more to give poorer Americans an equal chance at the 'American Dream." The U.S. would be positively impacted by a progressive income tax, but reforming the tax code and closing loopholes that the 1% utilizes would be beneficial as well.
ReplyDeleteI think the government should play an active role in helping class inequality, but it should be more from the ground up than a direct influence. How our impoverished areas are constructed, and the lack of direct access to important institutions for people living there are why poverty continues. Raising taxes can help to a degree, but whats more important is how we increase access to better education and provide more stability for children in poorer households. For me personally, I have been aware of class more so from me and my parents perspective than anything else. When I was younger, me and my family were incredibly poor. I remember living in impoverished areas vaguely when I was around 8 years old, a few years after my parents immigrated from Greece. I am most proud of my parents than anyone else, because despite obstacles pertaining to class they were able to achieve great elevation through extremely hard work. My view of American class is large, but I also try to keep my viewpoints objective. Americans that work hard should always be rewarded in a perfect society, regardless of class, background, ethnicity, etc. Our relationship with our government on any level should not be entirely indicative of this, however the foundation to follow the "American" dream should be a passageway to a better life. As of right now, for issues embedded in many aspects of our country, that is difficult to achieve.
ReplyDeleteI think the government should definitely play a different and a greater role in try to alleviate class inequality. I understand that it might be difficult to achieve in today’s political climate when the president of the United States won’t even release his taxes, yet he proudly gloats about how he is in the top 1%. (Some may surprised that he can make that claim with all the times that he has filed for bankruptcy but when you file under Chapter 13 instead of 7 and get to retain your holdings, this is what happens). That doesn’t change my opinion that the government has to do something about all the people and families that are getting left behind. I recently saw a video on Facebook of a program that was implemented in Fort Worth, Texas which gave homeless people (who have been registered as unemployed) a chance to get a job cleaning the streets for $10, plus benefits and giving them transportation from their housing to the job. They are hoping that this program not only cleans the streets of their city but gives some people who have lost hope in the process of becoming homeless, another chance and allows them to see a glimmer of hope once again. The City of Chicago, is one of the cities who saw this change and has decided to start applying it in one of our jurisdictions. This is a great example of the government seeing a way to help!
ReplyDeleteI grew up knowing that there was class inequality, I knew that a lot of people were more well off than others. It was pretty impossible for me not see that. I lived in a very rich area of the northern suburbs of Illinois. I went to one of the best public high schools in the country. There were kids around me who arrived to school in BMWs, Mercedes, and Ferraris, this list can go on forever, but I can’t say that I didn’t have the same opportunities. My parents knew the environment in which I was growing up in. But no matter how hard they tried they couldn’t beat old money. All they could do was provide as much as they could so that my brother and I could prosper so that we can give our kids what they couldn’t give us. Sometimes I think that the American Dream for my parent’s isn’t them owning a beautiful house in suburbia (which they actually do) but it’s for my brother and me to live comfortably, without having to think about money as much as they have had to, they want us to obtain that social class statues.
Class disparity is one of the largest dilemmas in America. I personally think there is more that can be done to stem the widening gap between the haves and the have-nots. Unfortunately the growing class inequality also appears to have significant racial connotations as well. I think one of the most effective ways that the gap could be addressed is with a higher tax on incomes that are seven figures and over. At a certain point, the higher taxes have a minimal impact on the net worth of those that are incredibly wealthy. There's nothing wrong with accumulating wealth, but when others struggle to get by, it seems to me that we could do more to help the poorest Americans make a better life for themselves, be it improved SNAP programs, better educational opportunities, or improved affordable housing. Thriving people in all walks of life makes for a stronger and better America.
ReplyDeleteClass inequality is something I never really experienced growing up. I never really saw the impacts it can have on an individual, or to a group of people. However, since I have moved to Chicago I have made an effort to try and help those in worse of situations, and have since then spent a lot of time going to different communities and I have been able to see the affect that income inequality can have.
ReplyDeleteI do think the government should put more of a focus on the goal of alleviating social inequality, and helping those in some of the poorer places in the country. More of a focus on helping the younger generations so that they can escape poverty should be a primary goal of the US government. From what I have seen at some of the schools I volunteer at in the south side of Chicago, the major difference is the resources available to the kids. It should be incredibly important to help these kids because as it stands they are being hurt by this income inequality, and do not have the chances other kids do. I think that in general addressing income inequality starts with younger generations, and helping them can make a major difference in the communities.
Class is a huge aspect of our lives that I believe we all grow up with and around in some manner. It has been embedded in our lives through socialization; class divisions have also been around for centuries.
ReplyDeleteThe government should play a greater role in alleviating or blurring the lines of the classes divide for so many reasons. However, it is our capitalist economy that may counter efforts of lessening the gaps of the upper and lower classes. The class divides are put in place because of many aspects of our lives such as wealth, income, and/or race. The government can make many attempts to help this divide like not decreasing taxes on the rich. One reason to get rid of class inequality is the downside of unequal opportunities and rewards given to people in certain classes.
It is inevitable to grow up with some degree of a sense of class inequality. I will admit that it does also bring on unfair prejudices and stereotypes that can be completely wrong. Class is not invisible to me. My family, friends, and the media has shaped the lens I have on class inequality. Mainly I see class as those who hold more wealth and stature to those who do not. I think that people who want to achieve upward mobility within the class system recognize the classes divide. In addition, people who are more fortunate see will themselves as a higher class.
I definitely believe that class inequality is a big problem in America, and that the government should make attempts to alleviate the enormous gap, through social programs like SNAP and Medicare. I’ve been exposed to the reality of class in America through the stories that my parents tell about their past-first when my grandfather died and my dad’s family was only able to survive off of Social Security, and then later when my parents both immigrated here from Pakistan after college, where my father likes to tell us he only had $12 in his pocket when he landed in Chicago. Of course, that number gets smaller with every retelling, but that story serves to show my siblings and I that we have to appreciate the opportunities we’ve been given and that we should always strive to give back to the country and system that has provided so much for us. This has definitely shaped the way I feel about the American government’s role in addressing social injustices, especially those concerning class.
ReplyDeleteFor me, social class was socialized in many ways, but one of those portals to becoming enlightened about class was my first couple years in college as a sociology major at a liberal arts school in California. I enjoyed studying, Max Weber, in particular. Weber formulated a three component theory of stratification: Class, Status, and Power. The one component that sticks out to me, in particular, is the one of power. According to Weber, power is defined as, "A person's ability to get their way despite the resistance of others." There are many groups of people in today's society that "cannot get their way" due to the resistance of others. For example, how do blacks, muslims, and/or queer people self-determinate in a society and government that constantly and consistently pushes back against them. It is not just a matter of race, too, as many people have stated above. I also think that the government should play a greater role in the issue. I think it is a shame that they are not more involved than they currently are. Like Hadiya said, the gov should alleviate the enormous gap with social programs. However, unfortunately, in our political economy, I do not see funding for any social programs coming any time soon. Also, unfortunately, I was socialized through my father, who is an ardent capitalist. I don't know how I feel about that...
ReplyDeleteClass actually was a largely invisible issue to me growing up. I grew up in a family homogenous white upper middle class neighborhood so class was never an issue that was addressed. In fact, my parents in general did very little to socialize me in terms of partisanship or shaping my views towards a certain issue. Because of this, I was raised to think that class and money was not something people talked about. It wasn’t until junior and senior year of high school when I branched out and gained a more diverse group of friends, ethnically as well as class levels, that the ‘invisible’ issue of class was made more visible to me. This may be a naive way of thinking, but I don’t think that class plays a huge role in the American identity. We’ve covered previously that race, ethnicity, and even national origin don’t diminish someone’s identity as an American, so I think that different levels of class doesn’t affect that either. While class may not change the basis of American identity, it certainly determines how we interact with out local, state, and federal government. I think that the government should do more to combat class inequality by reforming the tax codes that allows the richest of Americans to grow their wealth while the poor still suffer.
ReplyDeleteI believe we are socialized to notice class inequality but maybe not talk about it too much on a personal level. You never would ask how much someone makes because then you have a clear idea of what class they are in. I think we assume that the people we live around, peers, and coworkers share our level of class. This is a misconception though because just because someone has similar things or wages you don’t know their actual wealth. Someone with a beautiful home in an affluent neighborhood might be struggling to put food on the table. I believe there are many things the United States government needs to be doing to level out the wealth in America. We need to fix our tax system so that way the people in the top income brackets to pay more in taxes, it may seem unfair but a little extra out of their paychecks will go unnoticed compared to the taxes taken out of the poor’s paychecks. With that money we need improve the tools of our society that make it possible to avoid poverty. Investing in education is the first task, a good education from early childhood sets people and society up to succeed much more. Increasing the minimum wage can help it adds more money to the economy and makes peoples standard of living rise. There are many more ideas that I will not discuss here, there are too many. I believe that an idea class system that would benefit the American social identity would be lowers classes are almost nonexistent, there is a very large middle class, and then have your business owners and professions as the only people in the top classes.
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