The Violence of Wealth and Income Inequality
Image by Levi Meir Clancy.
With each passing year wealth becomes concentrated in the hands of a smaller and smaller number of individuals and corporations. It is estimated that by 2030 the richest 1% in the world will possess two-thirds of all global wealth. And in a world dominated by money, with wealth comes political influence and power, the corruption of democracy and the perversion of policy making.
The division between the rich and the rest, between wealthy and poor nations, is not a calm quiet space. It is a highly volatile cesspool, filled with animosity and resentment, ready to explode at any moment. It is a violent space.
Income and wealth inequality are entrenched forms of social injustice. They exist to varying degrees in every country of the world and are the inevitable consequence of the unjust, pervasive socio-economic ideology, Neoliberalism.
The impacts
In the UK inequality is high compared to other developed countries. According to the Equality Trust, the UK is the 9th most unequal country in terms of income of the 38 OECD countries. In 2022, they report that, “Households in the bottom 20% of the population had on average an equivalized disposable income of £13,218, whilst the top 20% had £83,687.”
This is pretty shocking, but wealth inequality is even more acute, with the richest 20% “taking….63% of the country’s wealth, while the bottom 20% have only….0.5% of the wealth.” Just half a percentage point of the wealth, hard to comprehend. And, if a recent report from the Fairness Foundation (FF) is correct, levels of inequality in health, housing, poverty……are set to grow over the next five years.
Britain, the report makes clear, “Is a society suffering from the carbon monoxide poisoning of unfair inequality — of wealth, income, health and education, and between regions and people of different ethnicities, genders, social classes and disabilities.”
The consequences of such inequality, on individuals and society as a whole are serious and are manifold. Countries with lower levels of inequality like the Scandinavian nations, are consistently found to be happier places to live; the populace is more trusting of others and the state, and crime is lower. Conversely, in countries where wealth and income inequality is higher people are more suspicious of other people, particularly people who do not look them, think like them or pray like them — foreigners, refugees, ’the other’. Social tension is greater, the general sense of well-being is lower, mental health is poorer.
Wealth and income inequality leads to educational inequality, which in turn leads to inequality of opportunity. Both the individual and society at large are impacted negatively as consequence.
The single greatest impact of inequality must be the absence of peace, in individuals, in communities and in countries. This grows from the seed of social injustice, and all forms of inequality are unjust. There will never be peace as long as such extreme levels of injustice exists, and while “unfair inequality” as the FF puts it, persists, not only will injustice continue, but, as the extremes grow wider, as they must, injustice will intensify. As Pope Francis said in 2013, “Until exclusion and inequality in society and between peoples are reversed, it will be impossible to eliminate violence.”
Not only is inequality unjust, it is immoral, dangerous and violent, fuelling extremism and terrorism. In addition it is simply unfair, and precludes the realisation of what FF call the five ‘Fair Necessities’ — fair essentials, fair opportunities, fair rewards, fair exchange and fair treatment.
Inequality is a major ingredient in creating fertile ground for extremists of all kinds to exploit, and for acts of violence, which in many cases constitute acts of terrorism, to take place.
In the UK over the last eight years in particular, far right views, on, for example, immigration policy, have entered the mainstream, distorting and poisoning the debate.
Brexit was a key moment in this national souring. An unmitigated disaster for the country, it was voted on by ill-informed disenfranchised communities that believed the lies of opportunistic stupid politicians. Speaking about the threat of the far right, Shabna Begum, chief executive of the Runnymede Trust (a think tank that claims it, “speaks truth to power on race and racism”) has said, “there is a real threat that, unless a new [Labour] government delivers swift and meaningful change to inequality, we will see far-right parties capitalise on desperation and despair and become a real electoral threat.”
This is exactly what happened recently, when outright lies and incitement to violence by far right agitators and right wing politicians, led to a week of riots in UK towns; riots that, in many cases qualified as terrorism.
The flag waving thugs hurling bricks at the police where almost exclusively white working class men and boys, poorly educated and disenfranchised, with no reasoned political view, just a lot of anger and resentment. Highly charged emotions, which are easily enflamed and focused by far right voices spreading hate and misinformation; the target, as always seems to be the case, was ‘the other’, asylum seekers, refugees and Muslims, and ‘the state’, in the form of the police.
Anger and bitterness caused, not by Muslims or asylum seekers, but by a range of social issues relating to injustice and inequality: poor housing, education and health care, lack of opportunity, unemployment, low wages and exploitation.
Social injustice, which feeds resentment and allows for exploitation by extremists, cannot excuse racism and islamophobia, but such appalling violence will never be eradicated whilst social injustice exists. It wasn’t middle class men and women from leafy suburbs that were abusing police and hurling threats at non-white asylum seekers.
Social justice and sharing
It is naive to believe that inequality can be eradicated, but it can be reduced; most people don’t actually want much. The focus should be on creating more equal societies; societies that are fair and just. Where the quality of health care and education, access to opportunities, housing and the arts, are not dependent on wealth.
Key to bringing about a socially just world is redistribution or sharing. On a global scale this means sharing the resources of the world more fairly, based on need, not on ability to pay. Nationally it means sharing the riches of the country more equitably; not allowing colossal concentrations of wealth to be held by an ever reducing number of individuals and corporations.
All of which requires the introduction of economic and social policies flowing from a shift in attitudes and priorities; a movement away from nationalism competition and division, towards cooperation, social responsibility and unity. Such values have been spoken about forever, but they remain little more than lofty ideals. However, if we are to rid the world of violent extremism and create social harmony and peace, these qualities, which are actually inherent, need to become the guiding principles for political decision making and socio-economic structures.
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