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There is highly compelling evidence that the average American family is still in worse economic shape than in 2007. The reality on Main Street is that income is falling and the American dream is unobtainable for most people.
The average American family’s income is $40,000 lower than in 2007. From this, we can see that most Americans have not recovered from the Great Financial Meltdown.
The financial crisis is killing the American Dream of a good job and home ownership for most people, Nelson D. Schwartz writes in The New York Times. Consequently, 10 years after Wall Street imploded, Main Street is still suffering.
Income Is Falling And The American Dream Is Dying
If you think your income is falling, you are certainly not alone. On balance, most Americans are still struggling as Wall Street grows richer.
Evidence that middle-class income is falling includes:
- The average American family’s income is $40,000 lower than it was in 2007, according to a Federal Reserve estimate.
- For the average white, middle-class family, its 2016 income was 19% lower than its 2007 income.
- The average black family’s 2016 income was 40% below its 2007 level.
- With regards to the average Hispanic family, its 2016 income was 46% below its 2007 income.
- The 2016 income of the average 40-year-old woman was 37% below her 2007 income.
Significantly, these figures show that there was little or no economic recovery during the Presidency of Barack Obama (D-Illinois) for most Americans. To clarify further, the Pew Research Center made these calculations using Federal Reserve data.
Income Is Falling For A Lost Generation Through Lost Wealth Accumulation
Income is falling so fast that Americans born in the 1980s are a lost generation for wealth accumulation.
As an illustration, a person born in the 1980s will make 34% less than somebody born before 1980. The St. Louis Federal Reserve calculates that people born in the 1980s are making 18% less than those born in the 1970s.
Additionally, income for persons born after 1980 fell between 2010 and 2016. These numerous facts indicate that there is no economic recovery for those under 40.
Income Is Falling: 40% Of Americans Don’t Have $400
Four out of 10 Americans do not have $400 in cash, the Federal Reserve estimates. The Feds calculated this figure when they asked 12,000 Americans if they could cover a $400 emergency expense. Therefore, 40% of Americans are one paycheck away from economic catastrophe.
The jobs being created by economic expansion are not helping the situation either. For example, the average Amazon job pays $26,000 a year or $13 an hour as Glassdoor estimates.
While income is steadily falling for middle-class Americans, those in higher financial stratospheres have not felt the same fiscal impact as of yet. In fact, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is worth $163.2 billion.
Bezos currently holds the title of the world’s richest man. Money estimates that Bezos earns the equivalent of the average Amazon employee’s annual salary every 10 seconds.
Income Is Falling And You Should Be Scared
History teaches that revolution occurs when income is falling for average people and rising for the rich.
For instance, the French Revolution broke out because nobles’ incomes were rising while peasants (most of the population) were starving. As a result, income inequality sparked the French Revolution. Bezos’ income, in particular, demonstrates that income inequality is growing in America.
Freedom is always in jeopardy when income is falling for average people. For instance, the American Communist Party reportedly attracted one million members during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
Income Is Falling And Your Freedom Is Threatened
Fidel Castro is just one of many tyrants who have used social unrest created by income inequality to seize power. In particular, an economy that only benefited rich Cubans helped Castro take over Cuba.
Unless income rises for all Americans soon, the United States will see a wave of political extremism, racial violence, racism, class warfare, and civil unrest. For example, strikes, rioting, interracial violence, and violent crime increased during the depressions of the 1870s, 1890s, and 1930s.
Americans should prepare for violence and threats to freedom because income is falling continually.
