Upper middle class income georgia series#

Given that almost all Americans are middle class, the most important distinctions occur within that broad group. adults described themselves as ‘middle class’ a figure essentially unchanged since 1939, when a Gallup poll found that 88 percent described themselves in the same way. Defining the upper middle classĬlass is a slippery concept, especially in a society that likes to think of itself as classless-or, more precisely, one in which everyone likes to think of themselves as middle class. It is discomfiting to think that the inequality problem may be closer to home. Those of us in the upper middle class typically find it more comfortable to examine the problems of inequality way up into the stratosphere of the super-rich, or towards the bottom of the pile among families in poverty or with low incomes. This undoubtedly influences their (OK, our) treatment of inequality. Most journalists, scholars and policy wonks are members of the upper middle class. Second, we should be attentive to role of biography. But we need to be clear that they are distinct. Of course, both objectives can be pursued at the same time. If reducing poverty is the goal, then it should be made explicit, rather than confusing it with reducing inequality-especially given that a good deal ( though not all) of the motive force behind contemporary inequality is gap towards the top. First, it is vitally important for policy analysts and policy makers to at least be clear about their primary concern. There is a case to be made that whatever is happening towards the top of the distribution, the gap we should care most about is between families struggling to put food on the table and those with adequate, middling incomes.

The poor have not fallen behind the middle class in recent decades. It is not plausible to claim that the individual or family in the 95 th or 99 th percentile are in any way part of mainstream America, even if many of them think so: over a third of the demonstrators on the May Day ‘Occupy’ march in 2011 had annual earnings of more than $100,000.įor others, the most important division is at the other end of the spectrum: the poverty line. But the top 1 percent is by definition a small group. It is true that the top 1 percent is pulling away very dramatically from the bottom 99 percent. “We are the 80 percent!” Not quite the same ring as “We are the 99 percent!”įor many, the most attractive class dividing line is the one between those at the very, very top and everybody else.

The first task, however, is to get a sense of what’s going on. Whether the separation is a problem is a question on which sensible people can disagree. After all, what does it matter if those at the top are flourishing? To be sure, there is a danger here of indulging in the economics of envy. Some may wonder about the moral purpose of such an exercise.

Upper middle class income georgia series#

In a new series of Social Mobility Memos, we will examine the state of the American upper middle class: its composition, degree of separation from the majority, and perpetuation over time and across generations. Indeed, these dimensions of advantage appear to be clustering more tightly together, each thereby amplifying the effect of the other. Gaps are growing on a whole range of dimensions, including family structure, education, lifestyle, and geography. This separation is most obvious in terms of income-where the top fifth have been prospering while the majority lags behind. The American upper middle class is separating, slowly but surely, from the rest of society.