Classism: An Issue Of Oppression In America
Classism: An Issue of Oppression
Luis A. Santiago-Gaetan
Springfield College
Introduction
Classism, an issue of oppression which exposes the ever-increasing differences and inequality between social classes in our society, and primarily measured by the wealth possessed and the amount of income a family or an individual earn, is every day more evident. For the last, few years we have witnessed the financial gap between wealthier and middle-class Americans widen as the years go by, but never as rapidly than after experiencing the last financial crisis of 2008. The effects of that financial crisis were disastrous, especially in the middle class. Americans lost millions of jobs, and wealth evaporated by the loss in value of real estate properties …show more content…
During the first year of the economic recession as a result of the financial crisis, which some may argue it was close to an economic depression; about five million American lost their jobs (Adams, 2013). That alone was enough to widen the gap between the middle and high social classes. In addition to all that loss of income, the retirement accounts of working Americans lost great value. In the example, my retirement account lost sixty percent of its value like overnight, the value of my retirement money just evaporated before my eyes in less than a year. Moreover, the value of my home dropped like a rock due to the burst of the real estate bubble that resulted from that financial crisis, without mentioning the millions of Americans that lost their homes to foreclosures. Furthermore, the easy access to credit that the middle-class enjoyed for so many years was gone forever due to the credit crunch that resulted from the same financial crisis. In fewer words, after the financial crisis of 2008, middle-class Americans lost billions of dollars in wealth that have contributed to the widening of the financial gap between classes, thus increasing the conflict between classes that results in classism (Adams, …show more content…
It has never gone away, we just were not very aware of it until made more evident by the recent financial crisis of 2008 (Adams, 2013). The “haves” control the wealth and the positions of power, while the “have nots” are at their mercy. In addition, for world historians who have heard the so-called ancient Golden Rule, it stipulates, “those with the gold, make the rules.” Therefore, as unfortunately as it sounds, classism and other forms of oppression between social classes will continue regardless of any actions or public policies that the government may elect to impose on
Luis A. Santiago-Gaetan
Springfield College
Introduction
Classism, an issue of oppression which exposes the ever-increasing differences and inequality between social classes in our society, and primarily measured by the wealth possessed and the amount of income a family or an individual earn, is every day more evident. For the last, few years we have witnessed the financial gap between wealthier and middle-class Americans widen as the years go by, but never as rapidly than after experiencing the last financial crisis of 2008. The effects of that financial crisis were disastrous, especially in the middle class. Americans lost millions of jobs, and wealth evaporated by the loss in value of real estate properties …show more content…
During the first year of the economic recession as a result of the financial crisis, which some may argue it was close to an economic depression; about five million American lost their jobs (Adams, 2013). That alone was enough to widen the gap between the middle and high social classes. In addition to all that loss of income, the retirement accounts of working Americans lost great value. In the example, my retirement account lost sixty percent of its value like overnight, the value of my retirement money just evaporated before my eyes in less than a year. Moreover, the value of my home dropped like a rock due to the burst of the real estate bubble that resulted from that financial crisis, without mentioning the millions of Americans that lost their homes to foreclosures. Furthermore, the easy access to credit that the middle-class enjoyed for so many years was gone forever due to the credit crunch that resulted from the same financial crisis. In fewer words, after the financial crisis of 2008, middle-class Americans lost billions of dollars in wealth that have contributed to the widening of the financial gap between classes, thus increasing the conflict between classes that results in classism (Adams, …show more content…
It has never gone away, we just were not very aware of it until made more evident by the recent financial crisis of 2008 (Adams, 2013). The “haves” control the wealth and the positions of power, while the “have nots” are at their mercy. In addition, for world historians who have heard the so-called ancient Golden Rule, it stipulates, “those with the gold, make the rules.” Therefore, as unfortunately as it sounds, classism and other forms of oppression between social classes will continue regardless of any actions or public policies that the government may elect to impose on