Wealth inequality is a wide-ranging problem in the United States. Wealth inequality has been increasing in recent years. A January 16, 2023 article by CNN stated, "The top 1% captured nearly twice as much new wealth as the rest of the world over the last two years'' (Luhby 1). Another article by Fox Business noted, "Wealth inequality in the US reached the highest level in over 50 years, the Census says" (Henney 1). Disparity of wealth impacts all of us; it impacts our school, economy, jobs, inflation, finances, and so on, and these two articles show the need to solve the problem of wealth inequality and show the large extent of wealth inequality in the United States. Neckerman and Torche, researchers at Columbia and New York University, claim wealth inequality negatively affects many different things, including democracy, the political system, education, race, and so on (Neckerman and Torche 5). Also, Katharine Bradbury and Triest Torche, both senior economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, noted that wealth inequality leads to unequal opportunities, which eventually lead to worse economic performance (Bradbury and Triest 6). Wealth inequality is a large problem, and it has large consequences, systematically affecting the lives of millions of Americans and causing them to be less successful than the wealthy. These alarming increases in wealth distribution cause grave concern and lead to the question: to what extent does wealth inequality affect US citizens and minority populations? To gain a further understanding of the potential damage caused by wealth inequality, it may be more beneficial to look at this from a cultural and social perspective.

Minorities 

 In order to get a deeper understanding of the effect of wealth inequality on minorities, we should look at how wealth inequality affects different races. Karuna Jaggar, a social justice activist, claims women and people of color own less wealth, have less economic security, and earn less compared to white men (Jaggar 4). Lack of wealth is a cause and effect of low poverty and income, which causes economic inequality and instability (Jaggar 1). People of color and women are not only less financially stable but are also paid less for the same amount of work compared to a white man; this not only affects individuals but also the United States' image as a country for minorities and women still having to make less than a white man. Sarah Heydemann and Andrea Johnson, an attorney at the National Women's Law Center, claim women make 80 cents for every dollar paid to a man, and it's even less for a woman of color, and to eradicate enormous wealth inequality in the United States, we have to achieve equal pay (Heydemann & Johnson 1). In all 50 states, there are significant wage gaps between mothers and fathers, women with disabilities and men with disabilities, and LGBTQ women compared with men (Heydemann and Johnson 1). Another research study from Yale University notes that wealth inequality between different races not only affects the wealth of individuals but also social and political resources (Altonji and Doraszelski 2). In conclusion, wealth inequality affects minorities, women, and African Americans more than anyone else, and if we don't lessen the inequality of wealth, the problem will only go deeper to the point of becoming unsolvable.

Political and Economical Power 

Wealth inequality also impacts our democracy and political system. Linda Faye, a professor of government and politics at the University of Maryland, claims that deepening economic inequality can threaten our democracy (Faye 2). Wealthy individuals or groups of individuals donate large amounts of money to politicians so politicians can vote on laws that benefit the wealthy (Faye 4). Even though individuals who are not as wealthy donate too, the wealthy donate larger amounts of money, making their voices more important. Melinda Miller, a researcher at Yale University, claims that racially discriminatory policies in the credit market, labor market, school finance, etc. have had an enormous impact on the wealth gap and inhibited the ability of blacks to accumulate wealth for a long period of time (Miller 2). One major reason that the wealth gap has been steadily increasing through recent decades is because wealth accumulation and wealth inheritance have been more common for white Americans than for others. A 2019 study from the Federal Reserve Bank of the United States found that white families have more wealth than any other or multiple races (Bhutta 1). Not only do white families have more wealth, but they also have a higher median, mean, gross asset value, higher inheritance, more emergency savings, etc. (Bhutta 4). This data shows some of the reasons why wealth inequality keeps increasing, but the increase in wealth inequality affects not only minorities but also our political system, social hierarchies, economy, and others. Colin Crouch, a sociologist and political scientist at the University of Oxford, claims economists are concerned about rising inequality because it threatens the growth of individuals and the economy (Crouch 1). All in all, inequality of wealth does not only affect minorities and people of color but also our democracy, political system, and economic stability. The more wealth between individuals increases, the more we are going to turn into an unequal and systematically racist society.

Behavior 

Stéphane Côté, a professor of organizational behavior at the University of Toronto, claims that higher-income individuals are more selfish and less generous than lower-income individuals. He made this claim after conducting a nationally representative survey study, the results of which showed that low-income individuals were typically more generous than higher-income individuals (Cote 1). Cote also claims that the high inequality in this country leads wealthy and higher-earning individuals to feel more entitled because their focus is mostly on increasing their wealth and keeping up with their social class (Cote 3). The evidence shows that wealth inequality has a tremendous effect on individuals' behavior, attitude, generosity, and so on. Wealth and social class  should never be this dominant in someone's life that this behavior is based on. Furthermore, Claudia Senik, an economist at the Paris School of Economics, claims there is no correlation between being wealthy and happiness and says there is no evidence to support those claims (Senik 2). This data illustrates that wealth has an enormous impact on us and our personalities. Being rich and fortunate shouldn't make you a terrible person; it should make you greedy and selfish. Not only is there no evidence that more money causes or increases happiness, but more wealth also causes less generosity. Similarly, Jordi Quoidbach, an associate professor at the University of Esade, claims that money impairs individuals' ability to appreciate positive emotions and experiences (Quoidbach 1). All these studies confirm that wealth leads to negative personality traits; traits that not only impacts friends and family but also our nations individuals like this only care for themselves and that traits only grow stronger the more money they make and the more the wealth inequality increases.

Conclusion

The growing issue of wealth inequality impacts all of us, no matter what our ethnicity, wealth, age, or social class. The social and cultural lenses provide valuable insight on how wealth inequality impacts us as a society and our personalities. Inequality of wealth impacts many parts of our lives; it impacts our education, personalities, social class, health, generosity, and so on. As a nation, we need to come up with a solution for the ever-growing problem. We need to come up with solutions fast because the more time we waste ignoring this problem the more it becomes harder to solve this problem to a point which it could be unsolvable. A solution is vital to address this increasing problem of wealth inequality so it doesn't impact the next generation.

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