Inequality in America

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An apparent and striking observation that has been noted in virtually all of our readings by far is the shocking extent to which America's low-income citizens are denied of an equal status, let alone any, a political representation. Dahl reminds us frequently that the moral foundation behind America's constitution is that all humans have the same intrinsic worth and for this reason every person should be granted an opportunity to enjoy equal voice and representation in the political institution. Why then, we must ask ourselves, is no one listening to poor Americans'? I believe that the answer to this question requires focusing on two distinct problems: why is no one listening to them, and why aren't they speaking up? The latter question was examined in detail by Sydney Verba and his most resounding response looks at lack of education, which he claims fosters political activity "through its effect on information, skills, values, resources, networks, and more."

Extraits

[...] Why then, we must ask ourselves, is no one listening to poor Americans? I believe that the answer to this question requires focusing on two distinct problems: why is no one listening to them, and why aren't they speaking up? The latter question was examined in detail by Sydney Verba, and his most resounding response looks at lack of education, which he claims fosters political activity “through its effect on information, skills, values, resources, networks, and more.” Since correlations between lower incomes and poorer education are ever-present, it is logical why the bottom third of the socioeconomic ladder has far less access to things such as candidacy information, the value of participation, and proper networks and relationships to groups that actively aim to bring about political change. [...]

[...] senators increased from $89,500 to $133,600. Thus, there are multiple clear and apparent personal motives for politicians to listen more closely to the wealthy, while there seem to be absolutely no personal motives for them to listen to the poor. Another way in which politicians manage to neglect the poor is through blatant manipulation both within political institutions and within the realm of public affairs. Hacker illustrates such tactics as agenda control, misleading framing, and deceptive rhetoric in the case of the 2001 Bush tax cuts. [...]

[...] The result is an unrepresented, poor working class that will only get relatively poorer and more unrepresented until fundamental change is brought about in the way our political institutions work. I believe that the only way to remove individual bias and motivation is to do so at the level of federal government i.e. create social expenditure programs that pay for education, political campaigns, and other costs related to political awareness and accountability. Until such changes take place, America's poor won't just lack a political voice; they will continue to lose hope of ever achieving one. [...]

[...] He noted that increasing costs in political campaigns since the 1950s have resulted in the “reliance of elected officials on people who can afford to help finance their bids for re-election.” However, he also found that families with incomes below $15,000 accounted for only of total campaign contributions, and similarly the ASPA Task Force found that in 1990 such families only accounted for of total contributions. This raises the problem that politicians have a clear incentive to weigh more heavily the concerns of those who will help keep them in office. [...]

[...] Bush certainly overspoke when he claimed that far the vast majority of my tax cuts go to the bottom end of the spectrum,” but images such as these only appease the poor, they do not actually change their condition. Thus, despite Dahl's emphasis on the democratic importance of equal representation, all of our readings outlined numerous factors indicating just why the lower class cannot be heard in America. Quite simply put, no one is willing to listen to them, and the less they are listened to, the more socio-economically stratified they will become due to policies that harm them. It appears that America's political institutions are largely driven i.e. [...]