Income Inequality: A Summary

Inequality is presents in many communities and there some consequences attach with it. One of the reasons for inequality is income. Stone (2012) states the consequences of inequality in communities, especially when talking about income of individuals that are part of the community, “income inequality seems also to increases racial prejudice and discrimination against women and ethnic minorities,” (p. 59). Low-income individuals are forced to accept what the services provided by the government, even if those individuals who do want them. Stone (2012) give an example of the lack of choices low income individuals, when talking about food, “very poor people live under constant threat of starvation or homelessness and don’t experience most of their

purchases choices but rather dire necessity,” (p. 73). As a result, voluntarism is not clear cut as in the market.
When inequality is in the community, it can also create inequality in the democracy. Stone (2012) give an example on how money and the democracy process are linked, “In an electoral system with high costs of campaigning, very wealthy people have a huge advantage,” (p. 61). Stone (2012) example shows that politicians tend to support policies that benefit rich constituents. Also, interest groups who have more money to support a politicians have a better chance on getting their issue on the agenda.
Another consequence of inequality is the security. There are different types of security, for examples: food security, economy security, and personal security. Those types of security are associated with inequality in the polis for couple reasons. In the case of the food security, when an individual is not able to obtain the proper nutrition or having enough to eat, then his/her food security is at risk. When talking about economy security, low-income people do not have the same advantages as wealthy people. For example, low-income people struggle to provide food and clothes for their families. Personal security, in the case of inequality, means shows that the individual is not able to live in the neighborhood where there is a low crime rate. However, low-income individuals usually live houses provided by the government. The neighborhoods where those houses are located are not always safe; as a result the personal security of those is threatened.