Innequality In The USA Flashcards
Introduction
A very apparent issue in the USA is social and economic inequality. This has been an ongoing debate for years as the United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Nevertheless, it has been stated by OECD in 2018 that at 0.39, US inequality is ‘dangerously high’ as the poverty rate and therefore inequality in the U.S.A has never been higher. This essay will ascertain the extent to which social and economic inequality exists in the US and will make specific reference to healthcare, crime, income and employment. Social and economic factors can be viewed as unequal due to discrimination against ethnic minority groups in the US. Indeed, this essay will argue that social and economic inequality does exists in the US to a great extent.
Healthcare (KNOWLEDGE 1)
Social and economic inequality exists in the USA which can be shown through healthcare. Inequality exists through healthcare by the fact that ethnic minorities are less likely to have easier access to healthcare. In the USA healthcare is very expensive for most families and it does not always cover every medical need which means when health care is needed, insurance may not always cover it. So many people do not pay for health insurance as they simply cannot afford it, especially those in minority groups.
An example of this is that 20% of Blacks have no health insurance in 2018 compared to only 10% of White, then 33% of Hispanics do not have health insurance.
Healthcare (KNOWLEDGE 2)
However, healthcare in the USA is trying to become more fair and equal as the US government have brought in the Affordable Care act passed in 2010, also known as ‘Obama Care’, where it aimed to provide more reasonably priced healthcare for everyone.
An example of this impact can be gauged in 2019 when 4.1 million Americans had signed up for new plans, which highlights a relatively healthy uptake for government support in terms of healthcare.
Healthcare (evaluation)
To evaluate social inequality within healthcare, although the US has been making strides towards more affordable and accessible healthcare for everyone, it’s clear that inequality in healthcare still exists because even with the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) many ethnic minorities are still finding it difficult to pay for healthcare and medical bills.
Crime (KNOWLEDGE 1)
One social inequality that exists in the U.S.A is the issue of crime. This is a huge factor of inequality in America, especially to those of ethnic minorities. Black Americans are overrepresented in virtually every aspect of the criminal justice system.
An example which illustrates inequality in crime was in May 2020 when white police officer Derek Chauvin arrested Black American George Floyd after he used a counterfeit note. The police officer knelt for several minutes on George Floyd’s neck and eventually killed Floyd, who was handcuffed and lying face down, begging for his life and repeatedly saying “I can’t breathe”.
Crime (KNOWLEDGE 2)
However, inequality in the area of crime in the U.S.A has changed over recent years. The rate of Black inmates being incarcerated without sustainable evidence has decreased. Between 2007 and 2017, there has been a 20% decrease of Black inmates compared to only a 13% decrease of White inmates.
An example of this is in George Floyds case Police Officer Derek Chauvin had been charged with second degree murder and manslaughter as the prosecutors of Mr Chauvin described the “severity of the charges” due to the public outrage of the case.
Crime (evaluation)
In evaluating to what extent the social inequality of crime exists in the U.S.A, it is clear that when considering the treatment particularly to those of Black ethnicity, despite media outrage, it has become more apparent that inequality continues to exist in the criminal justice system of the U.S.A.
Employment (KNOWLEDGE 1)
Inequalities are affected by economic inequalities to an extent especially in the terms of employment.
Employment causes inequalities for many reasons such as race and education as well as the benefits you get from a job itself.
An example of this would be Black Americans have an unemployment rate of 6.6% as of 2018 and Hispanics have an unemployment rate of 4.8%. This is due to the type of jobs these ethnic minorities typically enter into, for example Black people are more likely to enter jobs like transportation as well as community and social services.
Employment (KNOWLEDGE 2)
However economic inequality in employment is less polarising in the Asian community. Asians are more likely to get a better job and suffer less unemployment compared to other ethnic minority groups like the Hispanics and Black communities.
An example of this is in 2018, it was estimated that the Asian community had an unemployment rate per population in the US of only 2.7% and as a result, US Asians can be seen to be more likely to get higher paid skilled jobs in sectors such as health care, science and engineering and financial industries with a significantly lower rate of unemployment.
Employment (evaluation)
In evaluating this issue, economic inequalities in America do exist in the area of employment. This is due to the fact race has a huge impact on the jobs you are more likely to enter into. In this way, it is clear inequality in employment seems to equate with many more Black Americans being less likely to access high skilled, salary jobs than their White counterparts. This affects the income and benefits you would get from the job itself therefore causing inequality.
Income (KNOWLEDGE 1)
Inequalities are affected by economic inequalities to an extent especially in the terms of income. Indeed, White US citizens earn more than the Blacks and Hispanic communities respectively.
This is because Whites are more likely to get high-paying jobs, earning (as estimated in 2018) between $60,000 and $80,000 while Blacks and Hispanics earned between $40,000 and $50,000 in the same year.
Income (KNOWLEDGE 2)
However, it could be suggested that there isn’t absolute inequality in income or unfair share of wealth.
Asian Americans have a median salary of $80000 while African Americans and Hispanics earn between $40000 and $50000.
Income (evaluation)
In evaluating if there’s income inequality in the US, it could be said that despite comparatively better incomes among the Asian community, it is still very clear that the larger Black and Hispanic communities suffer more polarised inequalities in terms of income and this impacts on economc inequality overall.
Conclusion
In conclusion the social and economic inequality does exist in the US through healthcare for example that 20% of blacks have no health insurance compared to 10% of whites without health care and 33% of Hispanics this shows inequality because, healthcare is too expensive for everyone to afford hence not available for everyone to access it. Inequality is also shown through crime in May 2020 when Derek Chauvin arrested black man George Floyd after he used a counterfeit note, this shows inequality as he was then killed because of the colour of his skin. Also, inequality is shown through income as blacks and Hispanics earn between $40,000 and $50,000 which is less than whites and Asians just because of their nationality. Overall, these reasons show how social and inequality exists within the USA.
