Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Economic Justice For All: The Great Regression to Progressive Action We Are One Conference 2 Distribution of Wealth 3 I Guess We Must be Optimists 4 Who has the Money??? Top 1% has a third of the nations wealth. Top 10% has over 70% of the nation’s wealth. 90% of America has less than 30% of the nation’s wealth. Half of America only has 2.5% of the nation’s wealth. 5 Average Wealth by Wealth Class in 2009 6 Housing Crisis 7 Debt! 8 We are Now a Nation of Debtors $ Trillions 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 1970 1980 1990 Size Of Whole Economy Total Outstanding Debt 2000 2007 Monthly Review 12/08. From Federal Reserve data. 9 Lost Jobs 10 New Job Loss 14 million of those categorized as unemployed are out of work In October 80,000 jobs were created yet need 90,000 jobs just to keep up with job growth DON’T THINK RIGHT. THINK NEED 200,000 JOBS TO KEEP UP WITH JOB GROWTH It is estimated that in addition to 14 million unemployed Americans, another 2.3 million have simply left the labor force. 11 Lost Jobs 12 Immigration Scapegoating 13 The Truth About Immigrants Contribution to the Economy 14 Undocumented Workers Contribute to Federal Taxes The IRS recently determined that between 1996 and 2003, undocumented workers paid $50 billion in federal taxes. 15 Undocumented workers contribute to Social Security and Medicare The Social Security Administration estimates that the undocumented pay $8.5 billion in Social Security and Medicare taxes annually 16 Immigrants contribute to wage gains for nativeborn workers Roughly 90% of native-born workers experience wage gains from immigration, which totals between $30 billion and $80 billion per year 17 Legalizing undocumented workers can strengthen the US economy A path to legalization for undocumented immigrants would provide a $1.5 trillion dollar boost to the American economy over 10 years and boost wages for US born workers and newly legalized immigrants 18 19 20 21 22 23 The Racial Wealth Divide 24 Who has the Power? 25 “Corporations are People Too !” 26 27 Citizens United Decision 28 29 29 Workers Are The People 30 Wages In 2009, Productivity Up 9% Down 4.5% 31 Red States—Right to Work States 32 Red States—Where Anti-Union Legislation is Moving 33 34 ----------------------------- What percentage of private sector workers in the U.S. has a union job? A. 0% B. 7% C. 33% D. 50% 35 Private Sector Union Density 33% 1955 7% 2011 36 ----------------------------- In the United States, how much more money does the average CEO make than the average worker? A. 50 times B. 96 times C. 178 times D. 343 times 37 ----------------------------- Average CEO pay 343 25 times higher than the average worker 38 ----------------------------- Which president did the most to deregulate investment banks, enabling them to crash the economy? A. George W. Bush B. Ronald Reagan C. 1st George Bush D. Bill Clinton 39 40 ----------------------------- The national deficit makes up a bigger part of our economy than ever before. True False 41 As a share of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)… As a share of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)… Our national deficit was higher following WW II than it is today. Our national deficit was higher following WW II than it is today. - - -+ - - - - - - - -Our - -national - - $- - deficit - - - -+was - -higher - - - - -$- - - - - - - - - - - - 1945 following WW II than it is 2011 today. As a share of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)… 42 Two Economic Realities 43 What broke our economy? Was it the Great Recession? The Great Recession Increased Inequality 45 Economic Inequality didn’t start with the Great Recession 46 Before the Great Recession: Great Income Inequality Between 1979-2007 About 64% of income growth went to the highest paid 10%. While the other 90% only saw 36% of income growth. The poorest 20% saw not even half of 1% income growth. 47 Before the Great Recession: The Great Regression 48 During the Great Regression Concentration of income and wealth Stagnating average wages Shift from 1 worker household to 2 worker households More work less You Have Declining savings Increased Economic Insecurity Shift of cost away from the elite to middle and working class 49 Wages pretty stagnant from 1970’s 2009 50 2 incomes masking stagnant wages 51 2 incomes today < 1 income of the 1970’s Discretionary Single income of the 1970’s is greater than Discretionary Dual Income of the early 2000’s $42,450 > $73,770 52 Why $43,000 is more than $74,000 (after adjusting for inflation). 53 Declining savings 54 Increased Economic Insecurity During the Great Regression 55 Single Income Family Today If dual income families are in more difficult economic situations than single income families of the past then today’s single income families are even in worse condition. Most Americans have less median earnings than the (inflation adjusted) $42,000 average of the early 1970’s. Median Earnings 2007: White women - $36,398 Black males - $35,652 Black Women- $31,035 Hispanic males - $ 29,239 Hispanic Women - $25,454 American Indian men - $34,833 American Indian Women - $28,937 56 Other Signs of the Great Regression : Shifting of cost to worker 57 A Shift in Burden 58 Rewards of Productivity shift from worker 59 59 An Old West Virginia Proverb You’re liable to end up Where you’re headed” A Strong American Economy Requires a Strong Middle Class Not: Growing concentration of income & wealth Great Regression “ If you keep going in the same direction… Great Recession Stagnating average wages Working more having less Declining Savings Increased Economic Insecurity 60 Shifting cost on to middle & working class A Wall Street Crash in 1929 laid bare the falsehood that the Great Economic Inequality of the Gilded Age was sustainable. Those who had been most active in resisting the great inequality faced by the masses created a political climate where bold progressive reforms were implemented. The Gilded Age We Must Shift the Direction of the Country. It has been done before. Great Depression 61 Institutionalizing change It would take about 5 years until the liberal politicians in power took the bold steps of the “Second New Deal”. The Second New Deal would empower union organizing through the Wagner Act further regulated the treatment of workers through the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 , provide mass employment opportunities through the Workers Progress Administration, and provided benefits to the unemployed and the retired with the Social Security Act. Government investment in its citizens, regulation of corporations and finance, and the booming economy produced by World War II created the basis for the American middle class. 62 A Middle Class Economy The struggles of organized citizens combined with federal legislation created a more equitable growing economy. 63 Labors Ten Years of Rapid Advancement 64 Post 50’s Other Movements lead in struggle for greater shared Prosperity As t 65 Struggle on Many Fronts advanced a Shared Prosperity Agenda The Struggle of America’s most exploited workers, advance the most progressive set of policies since the New Deal in the Great Society Program. The Great Society programs from 1964 to 1968 included: The Civil Rights Act of 1964, Voting Rights Act of 1965, The Immigration and Nationality Services Act of 1965 The Civil Rights Act of 1968 -banned housing discrimination and extended constitutional protections to Native Americans on reservations. The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 The Social Security Act of 1965 (Medicare and Medicaid) The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 The Higher Education Act of 1965 The Bilingual Education Act of 1968 Truth in Lending Act of 1968 66 Movements of 1960s recognized Economic Justice was the foundation of social justice Goals of The Freedom Budget 1. Abolition of poverty 2. Full employment 3. Full production / high economic growth 4.Adequate minimum wage 5. Farm income parity 6. Guaranteed income for those who can’t work 7. Decent homes for all 8. Modern health services for all 9. Full educational opportunity for all 10. Better social security and welfare 11. Equitable tax and money policies 67 The Great Regression turning back Racial equity advances. 1977 to 2007 only about a 1% increase in Black / white income equity. 2007 to 2009 Black / white income inequality is increasing. 68 Financial Regression 69 Financial Sector a leading force in Great Regression 70 Wheel of Misfortune Rule changes favoring the 1% Greater political power for the elite Weakened labor and grassroots movements Greater Economic Inequality Weakened American Worker 71 How Do We Break Out of the Wheel of Misfortune We Fight Back! Immigration Rights March of 2010 72 We Acknowledge and Advance our Victories Strengthening Civil Rights Enforcement Fair Sentencing Act 73 We Recommit to past struggles 74 And We End the Lies 75 MYTH: What’s Good for Wall Street is Good for All 76 Wall Street wealth does not trickle down 77 MYTH: What’s Good for Corporations is Good for All 78 Corporate Profits go into the pockets of CEOs 79 MYTH: What’s Good for The Rich is Good for All 80 The Truth is there is enough for everyone 81 The truth is when the Private Sector is broke the Public Sector is needed 82 The truth is there must be strong regulation limiting the damage the wealthy can do to the economy The Rich are destroying the economy not working and poor people. 83 The Truth IS Though the wealthy and elite have torn the economy apart once again it is working people who will rebuild this country. So what are we doing to build an inclusive Middle Class Economy? 84