The Fight For Economic Justice Persists
From B & PC staff -- As we reflect on the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today, it’s impossible to ignore one of the defining issues of his day, and of our day – growing economic inequality and its pervasive impact on our country and our state.
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
March 18, 1968, Memphis, Tennessee
"There is nothing new about poverty. What is new is that we now have the techniques and the resources to get rid of poverty. The real question is whether we have the will."
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
March 31, 1968, Washington, D.C.
Since the 1980’s, despite consistent overall economic growth and ever increasing worker productivity, gains in income and wealth have skewed heavily to the richest one percent of Washingtonians, while wages for the working and middle class have stalled. The Great Recession only accelerated these trends –in Washington state we lost thousands of good paying jobs only to replace them with lower wage service jobs in the anemic recovery.
Today a large number of people work full time, but still live without enough income to meet their basic needs. At the same time, we have drastically cut back on our investments in education, health, and social programs – the very opportunities workers and their families need to get ahead.
This is not a sustainable model for a strong middle class. Only when more workers and their families have a shot at prosperity will our economy fully thrive, and everyone in our state will benefit.
As Dr. King said almost 50 years ago, we know how to improve opportunity and economic security for all, the question is will we? The answer is, we must.
