The Effects Of Classism In Early America

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Classism, which ruled early America, is again looking like it has taken a firm and increasingly tightening grip around the throat of our society. The effects of poverty hit hard working American families tenfold. Working-class individuals are more likely to get sick more often and die at younger ages. This is mostly due to the fact that many working-class and poor-class individuals cannot afford healthcare. To put some of the effects of classism into prospective, it helps to show reality. Well the reality is that “61percent of all US stocks are owned by households that fit into the top 1% income category according to US tax returns of the wealthy class. 83 percent of all US stocks are owned by households that fit into the top 1 percent…show more content…
This differs from Institutional classism, which focuses on the conscious or unconscious thoughts or behaviors of an individual with regards to social standing. (Social Exclusion, n.d.). The final breakdown, Social classism, is defined by Collins English Dictionary as "The failure of society to provide certain individuals and groups with those rights and benefits normally available to its members, such as employment, adequate housing, health care, education and training, etc."(www.collinsdictionary.com) All of these categories can be used as ways of differentiating and identifying classism. They will give a little more clarity common knowledge to the public so that classism may be exposed and then fought against. The uphill battle to fight classism is a tough one. What makes it even tougher is when there are actually laws on the books that support it. Yes, a Florida law actually supports classism. This law requires Welfare applicants to be drug tested. “The policy is simple: Welfare applicants take drug tests and those who fail are…show more content…
How will we ever create a society that truly believes that all men are created equal? There are constant reminders in society that there is a system in place that protects the rich. The court and justice system favor the rich. The O.J Simpson case is an example of how it’s not a matter of color anymore. Your social standing dictates how you are judged in America. Police are constantly using profiling techniques to help “find” criminals. The image of a criminal or thug is that of a minority. If prisons are overcrowded and there are more African Americans incarcerated now more then ever, who is it that the police will be profiling? Minorities. If judges see a vast majority of cases where the criminal found guilty are of a lower class, are judges (representing a higher class structure nine times out of ten) able to truly be impartial? Our public schools are underfunded and are failing to teach lower class students the fundamentals needed to succeed. How is it that Philadelphia public schools can be $80 million in debt but the city is able to raise $30 million for Pope Francis’ visit?
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