preview

American Injustice In The Wealth Divide

Good Essays

American Injustice The divide between the rich and the poor is defined by success. While the wealthy live in a utopian world where everything goes according to their needs, low class individuals live in a dysfunctional society trying to make ends meet. Aside from the obvious differences, society judges you by the size of your wallet. In The Divide: American Injustice in the Age of the Wealth Gap, by Matt Taibbi, he argues about the large wealth gap that most of individuals are oblivious to and sometimes refuse to see. Taibbi goes after the truth, uncovering how white collar criminals walk freely after committing the biggest of crimes, while the blue collars get criminalized and convicted for simple misdemeanors. The wealth gap between these …show more content…

According to Taibbi, “Under Secure Communities, law enforcement officials are required to fingerprint all detainees in custody for criminal offenses and run checks on their immigration status”, and more than anything, giving them the power to arrest undocumented people on behalf of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (200). This plan takes into action when officials put checkpoints in cities where people work or go to school; randomizing their times to set up. Not surprisingly at all, these checkpoints only occur in Hispanic communities; where housecleaners, factory workers, and any type of manual laborers live. In Hispanic communities, the majority are undocumented people who are unable to obtain a driver’s license because of their immigration status. Various factors are also taken into consideration; such as, the type of car someone may drive, or even the area one might be in. No matter what the circumstances, “The money is so good, police will show up anywhere where they’re likely to find an undocumented Mexican near a car” (Taibbi 202). Consequently, the effects of deportation are tragic because it can lead to broken families, becoming homeless, or risking one’s life. For example, Taibbi contrasts two possible outcomes on what deportation can cause. First, Alvaro’s story, a native Colombian with a successful construction business (211-231). Though he came into the United States legally, his visa expired making him an illegal immigrant. Caught without a license, Alvaro kept his true identity to himself and was immediately deported to Mexico, where he was kidnapped and in danger of getting killed. In contrast, Natividad (whose husband was deported), is a single mother that struggled with her six children trying to make a living without

Get Access