Some Place Like America: Echoes of the Great Depression

[Kuros]

Resounding Echoes of the Great Depression in 'Someplace Like America'

Consider—in 1979 “Wal-Mart employed 21,000 workers”, “General Motors employed 618,000”, and “the average CEO…was paid 35.2 times what an average worker was paid”. Flash forward to 2008 (and draw your own conclusions): “Wal-Mart employed 1.4 million”, “General Motors employed 92,053”, and “the average CEO…was paid 275.4 times what an average worker was paid…”

But this book is about American personal resilience in the face of systemic injustice.

One story, titled “Anger in Suburban New Jersey” talks about Lisa Martucci and her family who almost lost their home because of a year-long job layoff. Lisa’s response: “‘There is no ACORN for middle-class people,’ Lisa said, referring to the group that advocated for the poor. ‘There’s no support for us.’” Even after Lisa’s husband found another good job, “the family…stopped doing a number of things: ‘Going to the movies. Going out to dinner. Buying new clothes…We haven’t used a credit card in three and a half years. It’s a trap. The whole system, for it to work, is predicated on you being in debt.’”

While the people and their situations vary, many stories follow this theme: hard-working, resilient individuals who are trying to make a better life for their families. And many of them succeed.

But in a more just society, they would more than succeed. I suspect they would thrive.