Social Class Research Paper

Ella Driscoll

Period E
20 October 2017

The Issues Brought By Social Class

The issue of social class in American society is popular topic of discussion but can also cause tensions to rise when being discussed. The basic construction of social class is divided into three parts: upper, middle, and lower class. According to Nicki Lisa Cole, “we are sorted into groups by how much money we have” (Cole). Social class can cause tensions to rise for the injustices they promote. For example, according to the New York Times, “The people at the top of America’s money pyramid have so prospered in recent years that they have pulled far ahead of the rest of the population” (Johnston). Another issue that arises with regard to social class is the fact
that depending on the social class one has been categorized can affect their life span. Another issue regarding social class is the fact that ones race plays a major part in social class they are placed into. An article published by The New York Times in 2005, discuses the unequal share of the nation’s wealth. David Cay Johnston states that, “The average income for the top 0.1 percent was $3 million in 2002”. He also states, “That number is two and a half times the $1.2 million, adjusted for inflation, that group reported in 1980.” These statists allow for unequal opportunity amongst society. Johnston also explains how throughout history different Presidents have proposed different solutions to this problem, whether it be to raise income tax, lower income tax, or eliminate income tax altogether. However even though this has been a reoccurring problem for decades it is 2017 and American’s are still facing the same issue without a proper resolution. Another issue regarding social class is the idea that ones life span can depend on what social class their in.
According to The New York Times, an article written by Neil Irwin and Quoctrung Bui explain that, “in some other parts of the country, adults with the lowest incomes die on average as young as people in much poorer nations like Rwanda”. They also explain a staggering statistic, “The top 1 percent in income among American men live 15 years longer than the poorest 1 percent”. This is an issue that more attention needs to be brought to. Social class is an issue brought up in the news yet these specifics are rarely mentioned. In 2017 the life span for everyone should be the same no matter your social
class. Another issue is the fact that ones skin color, affects the social class one is placed in.
According to The New York Times article published by, Paul F. Campos, “In 2015 — the most recent year for which data are available — black households at the 20th and 40th percentiles of household income earned an average of 55 percent as much as white households at those same percentiles. This is exactly the same figure as in 1967.” One would assume that positive progression would have occurred throughout time however, this statistic show that this is not the case. This is a major problem within American society that needs to be solved. But there also need to be a greater emphasis placed on the topic and people need to learn about the specifics. The sooner we start to inform the American youth, the sooner we can collectively, as a nation, develop a solution. This is a problem that requires more than just raising or lowering taxes. In conclusion, America is supposed to be known as, “The Land of equal opportunity” however, the inequalities between the wealthy and rest of society along with the idea that race dictates social class, as well as, how ones life span can depend on what social class they have been placed in proves that not all citizens are given equal opportunity in American society. Our nation needs to collectively come together and learn just how divided its citizens really are, as well as, come up with a solution that will actually solve the issue instead of just taxing or
not taxing a social class.