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DefinitionIncome inequality refers to the extent to
which income is distributed in an uneven manner among a population. In the United States, income inequality, or
the gap between the rich and everyone else, has been growing markedly, by every major statistical measure, for
some 30 years.
Occupy Wall Street: Why Did They Do That Again?
Back Story Occupy Wall street was a
movement that started in 2011 at Zuccotti Park in New York. Protestors occupied places in the financial district of New York, as a form of peaceful protesting. Although it did not last long it did spark the phrase “We are the 99%”. Meaning that the 99% were regular working citizens, while the other 1% were the very rich
Why? They wanted to expose
social and economic inequality
They wanted to expose how much control the financial districts around the globe really have
They wanted to find a solution to inequality through trying to unite the 99%
What I learned Through Research Sparked by Occupy Wall Street
It raises the question why are the rich getting richer and the poor poorer?
The United States is not the only place affected by income inequality, but it is a global issue
The gap between the rich and the poor is only getting bigger
Income inequality is sparking a number of social issues
There are solutions to this problem
Why Are The Rich Getting Richer?
20% of America’s wealthiest control more than half of the nations income, same can be said for Thailand
In America the wealthy avoid paying more than the 15% tax bracket because they do not get taxed on capital gain
The wealthy get a better education than the poor, thus gaining a better knowledge of politics, thus giving them more control over political issues (such as taxes)
** Capital gain: A profit from the sale of property or of an investment
And The Poor Poorer?
Many people with no money use credit and end up having a lot of debt, and debt is hard to get out of
People who are born in poverty are more likely to stay in poverty because of things like lack of education and lack of opportunities
The distribution of wealth is very uneven so money stays where it comes from and the poor rarely see it
Distribution of Wealth
Notice how the richest gets 82.7% of the world’s GDP, and all other categories get 20%
This is the reason why the middle class is disappearing
This is the reason why there is such a huge gap between the richest and the rest of the world
Income Inequality Around The Globe
Bankok, Thailand Has a slum only miles away from one of the richest
shopping districts One of the best examples of how big the gap is
getting between the rich and the poor People are living in extreme poverty, while right
next door there are people buying Maseratis and diamond rings
Income Inequality Around The Globe Continued…
Income inequality is not a problem that only third world countries face, developed countries like Canada and the United states are also affected
Bridgeport, Connecticut has a gap similar to the one in Thailand
Gaps like this are happening at a rapid pace all across the United States
Please watch the following video for more details: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLHzEoIrLkk
Why Is This A Problem?
Problems of Well being
o Extreme Povertyo Lack of access to
proper healthcare
o Bullyingo Emotional and
psychological issues
Why Is This A Problem Continued…
Problems of Inequality & Power
o Gives all the control to one group of people
o The people that have the ability to fix the problem do not want to (rich want to stay rich)
o Makes people unequal because of how much money that have
Solutions
The governments needs to start taxing capital gains
The governments needs to make a special tax bracket for the wealthy, so that they cannot avoid paying more than the 15% tax bracket
There needs to be a more even distribution of wealth
The governments need to find a way to ensure that money is going back into the community in forms of things like skills workshops, creating new jobs, and better health care/education
Sociological Theory
Conflict Theory : Understands material inequalities to be a driving for behind many social problems
Understands differentials in power, well-being, and access to resources
Income Inequality causes all of these issues and conflict theory can help us understand why these social problems are happening and how we can try and eliminate them
Sources
CBC News.(2014, March 21). Why the rich get richer and the poor poorer. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/why-the-rich-get-richer-and-the-poor-get-poorer-1.2580263
The Great Divide: Global income inequality and its cost. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.global-income-inequality-great-divide-globalpost
Occupy Wall Street. (2014, November 23). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupy_Wall_Street
Mooney, L., Knox, D., Holmes, M., & Schacht, C. (2013). Thinking About Social Problems. InUnderstanding social problems (Special Edition ed., pp. 09-11). Toronto, Ontario: Nelson Education.
Wade,R.(2001,December). Fiance and Development. Retrieved from http://www.inf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2001/12/wade.htm
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