Under our current tax system, the rich are getting richer while the middle class slides into poverty. Those who were poor before the recession are still poor and have little hope of changing their situations. We’re not talking about an income gap here, we’re talking about income inequality. In fact, the distribution of household income in the U.S. is more unequal today than in was three decades ago.
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According to report released by the Congressional Budget Office, after-tax income for America’s highest-income households—the richest 1 percent—saw a 275 percent growth from 1979 to 2007, while the poorest—20 percent—experienced only 18 percent growth. Those who sit in the middle experienced just under 40 percent growth.
History shows us that, the wider the income gap, the more unequal the distribution of wealth, the closer a society gets to political unrest. We are seeing evidence of this in the growing Occupy Wall Street movement, which began in September in Manhattan. Since those first groups of demonstrators met to protest the unhealthy alliance between government, big business and the extremely wealthy, the movement has spread to over 100 cities. Marchers are working to expose—and hopefully spur a government response to change—the unequal distribution of the nation’s wealth. They are frustrated that just 1 percent of the nation’s population controls over 50 percent of the wealth and want to see that change.
President Obama proposed a plan to increase taxes on those making more than $1 million per year. The revenue from the increase would help balance the national budget over time, and pay for a comprehensive jobs program. Of course, the President has his Republican detractors who have put forth their own tax proposals. Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain has his 9-9-9 plan, which proposes a flat 9 percent business, individual income and national sales tax. Republican Rick Perry, another presidential hopeful, has proposed a flat 20 percent income tax.
The plans proposed by Cain and Perry are regressive and, if ever adopted, will negatively affect the poor. Under both of these plans, a majority of American households would end up paying more in taxes, while a great majority of millionaires would end up paying less. We need a tax plan that is fair but also takes into account class and taxes accordingly. This isn’t about taking money from the rich—it’s about fairly distributing and taxing income in a fairer manner. No tax plan will be perfect but we must work to develop one that closes the income gap, not widen it further.
(Judge Greg Mathis is a national figure known for his advocacy campaigns for equal justice. His inspirational life story of a street youth who rose from jail to judge has provided hope to millions who watch him on the award-winning television court show “Judge Mathis” each day.)
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