The annual remembrance of Martin Luther King in the United States takes place on January 15 and on what would have been his 95th birthday. But as his life and legacy are considered this year, there is plenty of evidence to suggest America is no closer to realizing King's dream of racial equality.
Consider as just one example that income inequality in the U.S. increased each year from 2007 through 2021. There is no secret to what causes the lengthening financial divide between rich and poor: Americans with healthier incomes have better-paying jobs. They supplement their salary with income from savings, stocks and bonds, and they are likely to own their home. They are also likely to have a health insurance policy for themselves and their families.
And the wealthiest are doing far better than anyone. One nonprofit organization that tracks such data summarized the situation this way: \"Between 1979 and 2020, the average income of the richest 0.01 percent of households, a group that today represents about 12,000 households, grew 17 times as fast as the income of the bottom 20 percent of earners.\" To no one's surprise, roughly 90 percent of the super-wealthy are White.
Yes, income differences are especially noteworthy when ethnicity is considered. According to one estimate, in 2022, the median annual income for White families was roughly $82,000, approximately $63,000 for Hispanic families and close to $53,000 for Black families. The differences in just one year might not seem that dramatic, but now project them out over a decade. In approximately 10 years, a typical White family will have earned $820,000 while the typical Black family would be trailing badly at just $530,000.
Put it all together and White Americans are far better prepared for the proverbial rainy day – those times when a family needs to tap into savings in order to pay for an unexpected emergency. They also have disposable income that allows for additional educational opportunities for their children or for something as simple as the family vacation.
Income inequality tells one piece of the story. The more pernicious aspect: racism. Human Rights Watch has been especially critical of the United States, noting problems when it comes to \"reparative justice; discrimination in the U.S. criminal legal system; use of force by law enforcement officials; discrimination in the regulation and enforcement of migration control; and stark disparities in the areas of economic opportunity and health care. Structural racism and xenophobia persist as powerful and pervasive forces in American society.\"
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
