Social Inequality In America

1373 Words6 Pages
When originally filling out the chart, I took a pessimistic view on the world at first. After hearing about countless statistics pointing out just how bad our divide between classes is, it was easy to ignore the reality of what my family life really is like. Being one and a half generation American, because my mother is Jamaican, and my father’s parents weren’t from American either the perception of how well off you are is different when you have so much immigration present. Life in America is so different from life living on the Caribbean islands. For example, just looking at simple things such as eating healthy is a major concern among Americans, especially amongst those in poverty-rich areas because of food deserts. In Jamaica however, those…show more content…
400 of the wealthiest people in America have more wealth together than all of half of the complete population of the United States (Reich, 2013). It’s one thing to look at numbers on a sheet of paper, but it is another thing to actual live through those numbers. In the book, Social inequality: patterns and processes, Marger states that America is a middle class heavy society, and that majority of the population falls within this gap which is constructed of three other smaller sub categories intermingled within. You have the upper- middle class, the lower middle, and the working class. I’ve always felt that being well off is always a perception thing. You can have people who have a roof over their head, food in their belly, and yet they can still complain about being…show more content…
From observation of my dad’s five children, and my mother’s three I would say all of us are doing well. My eldest brother has a comfortable life where he lives with friends in California, and has his Bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology. My second eldest brother is the most well off, having a six-figure day job, as well as being a landlord and now a realtor. He only has his Associate’s degree, but he is extremely well at what he does and makes a lot of income per year to add to his wealth, and his household wealth increased technically because of his fiancé who also makes six figures by herself. My third older brother is a Nuclear technician, who is still working on his degree, but he has his own place to live in a gated community and his own car, and I never have to worry about if he is starving or anything like that. I’m still in college, but I have a job, a savings account and a car in my own name. My younger brother is also still in college, but as a mechanical engineer major and lives at home with my mother and father like I
Open Document