What percent of all U.S. wealth is owned by the wealthiest 1% of Americans?
Critical Analysis
Find answers to the following questions using the visual above, any links below, your big brain, and your knowledge of American government and politics:
According to the visual above, what percent of all U.S. wealth is owned by the top 1% wealthiest Americans?
In 2022, Americans held roughly $137.6 trillion in wealth! Wealth is how much money a person has accumulated, minus all they owe. In the 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, American households reported a median net wealth (what they are worth in total) of $192,700. According to the visual above, what percent of all U.S. wealth is owned by the bottom 50% of Americans?
If American wealth were evenly divided the richest 50% of Americans would own approximately 50% of American wealth, and the poorest 50% of Americans would own approximately 50%. Likewise, the richest 1% of Americans would own approximately 1% of American wealth. According to the visual above, the richest half of Americans own 97.5% of all American wealth. That means that the poorest half of Americans own how much of all American wealth?
How would you describe the overall distribution of wealth in the United States?
Imagine the U.S. decided it wanted to distribute wealth more evenly. Describe one policy it could enact to make things more even?
Donald Trump who will come to office on January 20 has bragged about cutting taxes for the nation’s “highest” earners. How will big tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans impact the overall distribution of wealth described in the visual above?
The United States has the world’s largest GDP: $25 Trillion; but it’s per capita GDP is less than Luxembourg: 115,683, Singapore: $106,032, Ireland: $102,496, Bermuda: $80,271, Switzerland: $71,033, United Arab Emirates: $69,734, Cayman Islands: $67,500, Norway: $65,662, and Macao. How would you describe the wealth of the U.S.?
In 1776, Scottish philosopher Adam Smith published perhaps the most influential work in the history of economics: An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. This book, usually referred to as “The Wealth of Nations,” tries to answer the question: Why do some countries grow rich while others stay poor? Of course, you wouldn’t ask why Antarctica is poor! It’s in a terrible location, with horrible climate, and no easily exploitable natural resources. But it is interesting to ask why some neighboring countries are so much wealthier than others. Scholars have proposed numerous explanations for what increases a country’s level of economic wealth, including its location, geography, natural resources, free trade, investment, climate, health, education, financial market development, and good government. Make a claim about which of the reason for economic prosperity listed above is the most important.
The philosopher John Rawls is famous for a thought experiment called the “veil of ignorance." Imagine for a moment that you were asked to create the rules for a fair society, and that at the same time you did not know your gender, race, religion, income, wealth, cognitive ability, physical ability, or any other personal characteristics. Rawls believed that only by being ignorant of our own personal circumstances, could we objectively consider how societies should operate. Think of it this way: if you had zero idea about your social position, wealth, race, gender, or any other personal characteristics: would you be willing to be thrown into the U.S. at random? In other words, if you were as likely be Black, White, Hispanic, American Indian, or Asian; if you were as likely to be male as female; if you were as likely to land at the bottom (poor) as the top (rich) of the income and wealth spectrum - would you be willing to be thrown randomly into the U.S.?
On the other hand If you lived in a country that had a strong social safety net, took care of all its people, shared its resources, rights, and opportunities - where outcomes were relatively the same for any gender, race, or even economic group - would you be happy to take the chance of randomly being thrown into the mix?
Write and Discuss
Take ten minutes to write about the question at the top of the page and then discuss with your classmates.
Act on your Learning
Take our fantabulous lesson on wealth and equality out for a spin. Share your responses with your classmates.
Get Creative
Imagine a United States where wealth was more or less equally distributed. Describe what that United States would look like.
