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Social problems among youth
Social problems among youth
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Middle Class Reliance on the Next U.S. President Middle class Americans represent more than half of the United States’ population. They are the backbone of U.S. economics, and have been since the very beginning of the country’s history. However, an unstable job market, created by outsourcing, combined with a minimum wage which has not been raised since 1989, is gradually shrinking this economic group. To avoid the extinction of this critical class, the next president of the United States will have to go to extraordinary measures. Without major reformation, the middle class will continue to be absorbed by the lower class, ultimately resulting in the complete loss of one of America’s most important socio-economic bodies. As the U.S. continues to feel the effects of the 2008 recession, the middle class’s ability to keep their heads above water is faltering. They struggle to feed their families, working constantly just to scrape by each month. Parents are forced to sacrifice time with their children, trading in play dates and family dinners for overtime and second jobs. With affordable child care nearly nonexistent, parents without relatives willing to babysit their children may find their paychecks going directly to …show more content…
The current suggestion is a raise to a minimum wage of $15. This, of course, is optimal as it will allow people to work one job, which does not require a college-level education, and still feed their families. In doing this, middle class parents will also have more time with their children, not only lowering their cost of child care, but also allowing them to help their children with schoolwork. This, hopefully, would give children a better shot at getting into college, acquiring a full time job, and ultimately ending the cycle of poverty within their own
I consider my family and I to be in the middle class category and from being in the middle class, and the facts that are provided, the middle class is slowly declining as the time goes on. I believe that a lot of people go beyond the middle class to the upper middle class or people go below the middle class to the poor category. I’ve found a graph from Forbes that compares the rates of all classes from 1979 to 2014. From observing the graph my initial hypothesis was right. The middle class has declined by 6.8% between the years 1979-2014.
The most often cited cause of the decline of the middle class in the United States is stagnant wages. Between 1955 and 1970, real wages adjusted and inflation rose by an average of 2.5 percent per year. Between 1971 and 1994, the average growth of real wages was 0.3 percent a year. The stagnation of wages has been especially noticeable to middle-class people, who rely very much on the money they make at their jobs. Recessions seem to hit higher income households much harder, which sends them down to the middle class. Middle-income households may or may not be more likely than higher-income households to qualify for unemployment compensation when jobs are scarce. But those who do are more likely than high-income households to receive benefits that replace a greater share of their regular wages, which helps them maintai...
What seems to go unnoticed by many Americans is the evident and growing wealth gap. According to Pew Research Center, the current U.S. income is at its highest since 1928. This large dispersion of wealth can be attributed by the “fall [of the] routine producers” (Reich). Where jobs that were once attainable during the 70s are declining due to advancing technology and corporations finding workers in poor countries who are willing to work at half the cost of the routine producers. What also drives this wealth gap is the power of corporations in an age of extravagant consumerism. Through media, the demand to buy what we want is unavoidable. Corporations are able to gain revenue while people go unemployed because of America’s vast opportunities to buy what we want when we want it.
To examine the socioeconomic status of my study mother, Susan and assess whether she exhibits similar characteristics to other mothers in the same social class at a local, regional and national level. The effect of socioeconomic status on different aspects of pregnancy and childcare will be discussed.
Scaliger, Charles. "The fading middle class: notwithstanding the very real technological advances that Americans use for their benefit, the standard of living for America's middle class has been declining for decades." The New American 3 Mar. 2014: 10+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
When we as human beings are born into this world, there are things that we have control over, and other things that we have no say in. We control what we do with our lives, what schools to attend, what activities to be a part of, and who we marry, for example. This seems to be quite fair, and for the most part, we take it for granted. While we do have these kinds of freedoms, there are other aspects of life that we have no control over. One thing that we are born into, is our social class. No matter who you are, there is a social class that you fall into, and you really have no say in it. The one social class that seems to be the most populated is the middle, or working class. These people usually classify themselves as being as normal, or as ordinary as they come. While that seems to be the common thought, there are plenty of middle class families that aren't as normal as they think. Depending on what class you belong to, your perception of "normal" tends to vary. So what exactly is "normal" to the average, middle, working class family?
America has always seen as the symbolic ideal country of prosperity and equality. This is the reason why people come to America hoping to become successful, but in matter of fact we all have an equal plan field to be successful is not entirely true. For there are social boundaries that keep use limited based upon our own status. Whether we are born of a low class or of a high class the possibility of economic mobility in a sense are predetermined by two factors of social class and success together they both affecting one’s another opportunity of success. In order to achieve success, we must know that it is made up of two main concepts and they are fortune and position. But when a person is limited by their class prohibiting them to achieve success, the point of trying is meaningless. However, there is a way to break the construct that keep groups stuck in the lower-class and is through education. Education gives more opportunities for success to the individuals and since education is very important, culture and the government should focus more directly upon this to reach economic stability. Class standing directly affects economic success in America by limiting a person’s chance of success however; one can overcome by focusing more upon education and culture.
Becoming an adult is signified differently in every culture, in America, reaching middle class status is one way that is used to indicate adulthood. To obtain middle class status one would need to acquire a job, become financially stable, get a house, and have a family. The “Mood Economy”, self-reliance, and distrust in institutions, as stated in Silva’s Coming Up Short, have reshaped what it means to become an adult. Replacing the traditional white picket fence ideals with new neoliberal ones. Although middle class status is still a goal for a lot of individuals, the number of people who reach middle class status has diminished significantly over the years. By examining the new milestones that mark adulthood and evaluating how the state reproduces little social mobility through “Attacking Solidarity” mentioned in Requiem for the American Dream, we can get a better idea of how the middle class disappeared before us.
While the the 1%, are secured, no one is addressing the rest of the people. As the economy flourishes, housing, higher education and health care, and child care increases with it to the point where 30 percent of a person’s income goes towards housing. People are finding it impossible to purchase a house with their middle class incomes. People begin to fall out of the once stable middle class because too much is needed to be sacrificed in order to live in a stable home. In the shrinking middle class, “40% or more of the residents live below the poverty
The historical context of inequality in the United States can be can be traced back to the American South and the times of the Civil War. The slave trade, Emancipation Proclamation and 13th Amendment largely contribute to the inequality presented of the African American population.
Is Inequality in America really as bad as we perceive it? In America, we have many people discussing back and forth on the issue of inequality. Some people claim that inequality is a rapidly growing phenomenon, separating the rich from the poor. Though, other Americans claim that we’re progressing and departing away from inequality. However, the way in which we choose to perceive inequality is our choice, but we cannot ignore the fact that it exist. Inequality is an issue that has been constantly debated in the past, and will continue to be debated, so long as we do not put an end to it. Inequality is changing our country. The people who enjoy higher social statuses are spending their money with no limitations, whereas the people in the lower
Inequality today is one of the most significant problems that America faces. According to Inequality.org in 2015 Household income of the top 0.1% of the population gained $6,747,439 while bottom 90% of the population got $34,074 (Inequality.org). The gap between incomes only continues to grow every year, which requires a change in social and economic policies of the country. However, it should be remembered that economic indicators can tell about working conditions, living conditions, nutrition, education of representatives of various groups of the population, but they can not show a picture of the realizability and opportunities to be successful in life for different groups of the population. That is why at the end
Income inequality is when income is unevenly distributed in a country. This inequality has reached staggering heights across the world. Even in what we consider developed countries this disparity is only increasing. The causes for income equality can range anywhere from immigration to the policies and politics of a country. However, some critics of income inequality will argue that it will always be present and is necessary to stimulate growth. Nonetheless, the problem is not only that the gap between the poor and the rich is widening but that income inequality is causing devastating market and government failures.
The “American Dream” consists of all U.S citizens having the opportunity to obtain success and prosperity through hard work and determination, but, in a capitalistic economy such as the United States the “American Dream” is merely impossible. Low wages are masked as starting points, taught to eventually pay off in the form of small raises or promotions. Competition to obtain unequally shared resources, is used to define an individual’s extent of initiative. In reality, these are all concepts used by the wealthy to deter the poor working class from obtaining upward mobility. Middle class America, the key factor in helping the wealthy stay wealthy, have adapted to these beliefs and concepts, created to keep them far behind. Conflict theorist
Children are influenced by their parents’ action. If the parents are not teaching his or her child what is right from wrong, then it may leave the child to experiment for themselves, like becoming involved in bad activity. If a child commits a delinquent act his or her parent should be held accountable.