Income Gap During The Great Depression

Inequality of wealth and income in the great depression the following is excerpted from the wikipedia entry on the great depression.

Income gap during the great depression. The idea is that the rich had too much of the money. Significantly during the great depression income inequality came down from its peak in 1929 and was relatively stable with the richest 1 taking approximately 15 of total income between 1930 and. 3 horst mendershausen changes in income distribution during the great depression new york 1946 pp. An economics paper says that the wealth gap in america is as high as it s been since before the great depression as income inequality grows.

The unequal distribution of income a popular theory as to what might have caused the great depression was that in the 1920 s there was an unequal distribution of income between the rich and the middle or poor wikipedia. These 2 facts show that america in the 1920 s had a huge unequal distribution of wealth and it helped contribute to the great depression. During this period the roaring twenties weren t roaring for everyone. The paper which covers data through 2007 points to a staggering unprecedented disparity in american incomes.

During the 20 s low wages for many americans help cause the uneven wealth because many americans worked in factories or on farms that did not leave them with a lot of money. Roosevelt s chairman of the federal reserve from november 1934 to february 1948 detailed what he believed caused the depression in his memoirs beckoning frontiers. Income inequality in the united states is at an all time high surpassing even levels seen during the great depression according to a recently updated paper by university of california berkeley professor emmanuel saez. A macroeconomic history new york 1981 pp.