1. Distribution of Household Income in the United States
Jaclyn Best

2. What is household income?
The combined gross income of all household members
Measured in dollars
NOT wealth
Wealth aka Net Worth:
Savings, real estate, retirement funds, stocks, bonds, and trust funds
Measured in time
Median number of income earners per household
Most households are married couple families versus single male/single female families

3. Where do you fall on the income curve?
Incomes grow faster at the top than in the middle or bottom end
The rich are getting richer
Income at the 50th and 51st percentiles: $42,327 vs $43,564 (a $1,237 difference)
Income at the 98th and 99th percentiles: $360,435 vs $506,553 (a $146,118 difference!)
Income at the 99.5th and 99.9th percentiles: $ vs $2,075,574 (a $1,259,706 difference!)
Source: NYT, Tax Policy Center

4. Another way to look at it

5. Household Income and Education
Income increases as amount of education increases
Are these differences increasing?
Source: US Census, 2010

6. Household Income and Race
Differences in personal income versus household income and race
Source: US Census, 2005

7. Distribution by county
Income is not equally distributed spatially
Urban areas see higher median incomes than rural areas

8. Okay, so the distribution of household income in the US is clearly unequal. What are Americans doing about it?

9. Occupy Wall St: We are the 99%
Began September 17, 2011 (8 months ago) in NYC
Has spread to over 100 cities in the US and 1,500 cities globally
“#ows is fighting back against the corrosive power of major banks and multinational corporations over the democratic process, and the role of Wall St. in creating an economic collapse that has caused the greatest recession in generations…aims to fight back against the richest 1% of people that are writing the rules of an unfair global economy that is foreclosing on our future” (occupywallst.org).

11. Criticisms of Occupy Leaderless movement Demands and goals are unclear
Little support from mainstream media outlets
Very little has been accomplished in terms of litigation and “Wall St. reform”

12. The Bottom Line
There is significant household income inequality in the US
The already huge gap between the rich and the poor/middle class is increasing
Something needs to be done to stop this trend
Interesting TED talk: Richard Wilkinson: How economic equality harms societies