The controversy in the United States is whether the fault of racial and economic injustice lies with the individuals or the system. Some see poverty and racial inequality as a result of personal choices, while others see it as a result of government or systemic injustice. Lots of people have the ideology that working hard and getting an education will make you successful. Very few see the reality that individuals are at the mercy of the system, which determines their success from the day that they are born. According to Revolution Newspaper, “People like Bill Cosby as well as Bill Clinton and Barack Obama – not only go so far as to blame Black people for the horrendous situation into which this system has shoved them, with its dead end set of “choices”, they do so with a phony pose of concern of Black people.” This shows that the problems people of color (mainly Blacks) face in the US are created by the system and the only way to end this is creating a new system.
The US has an economic system that controls the money flow. According to a 2007 statistic, the richest 10% control ⅔ of America’s net worth. This means that the top 10% of Americans have 38.5% of all the money in America and can save it or spend it on whatever and whenever they want. On the other hand the other 90% of Americans together only have 26.9% of all the money in the country. This is not enough to have “The American Dream” or live with the quality of life enjoyed by the other 10% of Americans. This is not a coincidence that only a small percentage of people have the power of obtaining easy money, while the other percentage is born and buried poor.
When people have no money they are likely forced into commiting more crimes than those who are more fortunate, just to survive. A shocking quote by Revolution Newspaper’s article, “Why ‘Stop The Violence’ Can’t Happen””
The violence people commit against each other is not at root due to “bad choices” that need to be “solved first” but is due to the ways in which this system has confined people in a position where they are set against each other to survive.
This is an atrocious fact. Many Americans that commit these crimes are indeed not bad people at all, but are people who were set up from the start with a lower chance of enjoying comfortable lives.
If people could realize that the system is at fault for killing the “American Dream” and dragging down 90% of the populace, then maybe we could all live a little more equally. On the other hand, the upper class of people like their place in society and would do anything to keep it that way. Some people believe “groups” of “individuals” need to do better for themselves. I think that there is no way 90% of a country could all make individual decisions that keep them from their own success. I do believe that a push for a new system needs to be made today.
We need to update you on where Truthout stands.
To be brutally honest, Truthout is behind on our fundraising goals for the year. There are a lot of reasons why. We’re dealing with broad trends in our industry, trends that have led publications like Vice, BuzzFeed, and National Geographic to make painful cuts. Everyone is feeling the squeeze of inflation. And despite its lasting importance, news readership is declining.
To ensure we stay out of the red by the end of the year, we have a long way to go. Our future is threatened.
We’ve stayed online over two decades thanks to the support of our readers. Because you believe in the power of our work, share our transformative stories, and give to keep us going strong, we know we can make it through this tough moment.
If you value what we do and what we stand for, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to support our work.