Economic Justice For All: The Great Regression to Progressive Action

We Are One Conference

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OUR BROKEN ECONOMY

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Distribution of Wealth

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I Guess We Must be Optimists

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Who has the Money???

Top 1% has a third of the nations wealth.

Top 10% has over 70% of the nation’s wealth.

90% of America has less than 30% of the nation’s wealth.

Half of America only has 2.5% of the nation’s wealth.

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Average Wealth by Wealth Class in 2009

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Housing Crisis

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Debt!

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We are Now a Nation of Debtors

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101520253035404550

1970 1980 1990 2000 2007

Size Of Whole Economy

Total Outstanding Debt

Monthly Review 12/08. From Federal Reserve data.

$ Trillions

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Lost Jobs

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New Job Loss

14 million of those categorized as unemployed are out of work

In October 80,000 jobs were created yet need 90,000 jobs just to keep up with job growth DON’T THINK RIGHT. THINK NEED 200,000 JOBS TO KEEP UP WITH JOB GROWTH

It is estimated that in addition to 14 million unemployed Americans, another 2.3 million have simply left the labor force.

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Lost Jobs

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Immigration Scapegoating

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The Truth About Immigrants Contribution to the Economy

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The IRS recently determined that between 1996 and 2003, undocumented workers paid $50 billion in federal taxes.

Undocumented Workers Contribute to Federal Taxes

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The Social Security Administration estimates that the undocumented pay $8.5 billion in Social Security and Medicare taxes annually

Undocumented workers contribute to Social Security and Medicare

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Roughly 90% of native-born workers experience wage gains from immigration, which totals between $30 billion and $80 billion per year

Immigrants contribute to wage gains for native-born workers

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A path to legalization for undocumented immigrants would provide a $1.5 trillion dollar boost to the American economy over 10 years and boost wages for US born workers and newly legalized immigrants

Legalizing undocumented workers can strengthen the US economy

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The Racial Wealth Divide

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Who has the Power?

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“Corporations are People Too !”

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Citizens United Decision

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Workers Are The People

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In 2009, Productivity

Up 9%

Wages

Down4.5%

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Red States—Right to Work States

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Red States—Where Anti-Union Legislation is Moving

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What percentage of private sector workers in the U.S. has a union job?

A. 0%

B. 7%

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C. 33%

D. 50%

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1955

2011

33%

7%

Private Sector Union Density

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In the United States, how much more money does the average CEO make than the average worker?

A. 50 times

B. 96 times

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C. 178 times

D. 343 times

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343 25

Average CEO pay

times higher than the average worker

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Which president did the most to deregulate investment banks, enabling them to crash the economy?

A. George W. Bush

B. Ronald Reagan

C. 1st George Bush

D. Bill Clinton

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The national deficit makes up a bigger part of our economy than ever before. -

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True

False

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As a share of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)…

Our national deficit was higher following WW II than it is today.

As a share of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)…

Our national deficit was higher following WW II than it is today.

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As a share of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)…

Our national deficit was higher following WW II than it is today.

$ $$$+- 20111945

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Two Economic Realities

What broke our economy?

Was it the Great Recession?

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The Great Recession Increased Inequality

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Economic Inequality didn’t start with the Great Recession

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Before the Great Recession: Great Income Inequality

Between 1979-2007

About 64% of income growth went to the highest paid 10%.

While the other 90% only saw 36% of income growth.

The poorest 20% saw not even half of 1% income growth.

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Before the Great Recession: The Great Regression

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During the Great Regression

Concentration of income and wealth

Stagnating average wages

Shift from 1 worker household to 2 worker households

More work less You Have

Declining savings

Increased Economic Insecurity

Shift of cost away from the elite to middle and working class

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Wages pretty stagnant from 1970’s 2009

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2 incomes masking stagnant wages

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2 incomes today < 1 income of the 1970’s

Discretionary Single income of the 1970’s is greater thanDiscretionary Dual Income of the early 2000’s

$42,450 > $73,770

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Why $43,000 is more than $74,000 (after adjusting for inflation).

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Declining savings

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Increased Economic Insecurity During the Great Regression

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Single Income Family Today

If dual income families are in more difficult economic situations than single income families of the past then today’s single income families are even in worse condition.

Most Americans have less median earnings than the (inflation adjusted) $42,000 average of the early 1970’s.

Median Earnings 2007:

White women - $36,398

Black males - $35,652 Black Women- $31,035

Hispanic males - $ 29,239 Hispanic Women - $25,454

American Indian men - $34,833 American Indian Women - $28,937

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Other Signs of the Great Regression : Shifting of cost to worker

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A Shift in Burden

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Rewards of Productivity shift from workerRewards of Productivity shift from worker

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An Old West Virginia Proverb

“ If you keep going in the same direction…

You’re liable to end up

Where you’re headed”

A Strong American Economy Requires a Strong Middle Class Not:Growing concentration of income & wealth

Stagnating average wages

Working more having less

Declining Savings

Increased Economic Insecurity

Shifting cost on to middle & working class

Great R

egressio

n

Great Recession

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We Must Shift the Direction of the Country. It has been done before.

A Wall Street Crash in 1929 laid bare the falsehood that the Great Economic Inequality of the Gilded Age was sustainable.

Those who had been most active in resisting the great inequality faced by the masses created a political climate where bold progressive reforms were implemented.

Th

e Gild

ed A

ge

Great Depression

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Institutionalizing change

It would take about 5 years until the liberal politicians in power took the bold steps of the “Second New Deal”.

The Second New Deal would empower union organizing through the Wagner Act further regulated the treatment of workers through the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 , provide mass employment opportunities through the Workers Progress Administration, and provided benefits to the unemployed and the retired with the Social Security Act.

Government investment in its citizens, regulation of corporations and finance, and the booming economy produced by World War II created the basis for the American middle class.

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A Middle Class Economy

The struggles of organized citizens combined with federal legislation created a more equitable growing economy.

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Labors Ten Years of Rapid Advancement

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Post 50’s Other Movements lead in struggle for greater shared Prosperity

As t

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Struggle on Many Fronts advanced a Shared Prosperity Agenda

The Struggle of America’s most exploited workers, advance the most progressive set of policies since the New Deal in the Great Society Program.

The Great Society programs from 1964 to 1968 included:

The Civil Rights Act of 1964, Voting Rights Act of 1965, The Immigration and Nationality Services Act of 1965 The Civil Rights Act of 1968 -banned housing discrimination

and extended constitutional protections to Native Americans on reservations.

The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964The Social Security Act of 1965 (Medicare and Medicaid)The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965The Higher Education Act of 1965The Bilingual Education Act of 1968Truth in Lending Act of 1968

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Movements of 1960s recognized Economic Justice was the foundation of social justice

Goals of The Freedom Budget

1. Abolition of poverty

2. Full employment

3. Full production / high economic growth

4.Adequate minimum wage

5. Farm income parity

6. Guaranteed income for those who can’t work

7. Decent homes for all

8. Modern health services for all

9. Full educational opportunity for all

10. Better social security and welfare

11. Equitable tax and money policies

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The Great Regression turning back Racial equity advances.

1977 to 2007 only about a 1% increase in Black / white income equity. 2007 to 2009 Black / white income inequality is increasing.

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Financial Regression

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Financial Sector a leading force in Great Regression

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Wheel of Misfortune

Rule changes favoring the 1%

Greater Economic Inequality

Weakened American Worker

Weakened labor and grassroots

movements

Greater political power for the

elite

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How Do We Break Out of the Wheel of Misfortune

We Fight Back! Immigration Rights March of 2010

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We Acknowledge and Advance our Victories

Strengthening Civil Rights Enforcement

Fair Sentencing Act

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We Recommit to past struggles

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And We End the Lies

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MYTH: What’s Good for Wall Street is Good for All

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Wall Street wealth does not trickle down

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MYTH: What’s Good for Corporations is Good for All

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Corporate Profits go into the pockets of CEOs

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MYTH: What’s Good for The Rich is Good for All

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The Truth is there is enough for everyone

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The truth is when the Private Sector is broke the Public Sector is needed

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The truth is there must be strong regulation limiting the damage the wealthy can do to the economy

The Rich are destroying the economy not working and poor people.

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The Truth IS

Though the wealthy and elite have torn the economy apart once again it is working people who will rebuild this country.

So what are we doing to build an inclusive Middle Class Economy?