Tell Me More with Kelly Corrigan | Matthew Desmond | Season 6 | Episode 3

Overview

• Host: Kelly Corrigan
• Guest: Matthew Desmond (Pulitzer Prize-winning sociologist and author)
• Topic: Socioeconomic gap in the U.S. and poverty
• Aired: 10/16/2023
• Duration: 25m 48s

Key Discussion Points

Poverty in America

• Desmond asserts that poverty persists because many benefit from it.
• Critiques the focus on the poor themselves rather than systemic issues.

Personal Background

• Desmond's own experience of losing his childhood home due to financial struggles.

Government Measures on Poverty

• Mollie Orshansky's poverty line measure: based on food costs, still used today.
• Supplemental Poverty Measure (2011): Accounts for aid and regional housing costs.

Economic Solutions

• Desmond advocates for collecting due taxes from the richest to alleviate poverty.
• Example: Top 1% tax evasion could potentially fund poverty eradication.

Scarcity Mindset

• Criticizes the notion that the U.S. cannot afford to combat poverty.
• Calls for a welfare state that prioritizes lifting the economically vulnerable.

Housing and Tax Subsidies

• Discusses the disparity in spending on housing aid vs. homeowner tax subsidies.
• Highlights racial disparities, with more subsidies going to white families.

Minimum Wage

• Challenges the idea that increasing minimum wage leads to unemployment.
• Cites studies that contradict George Stigler's influential theory on wages.

Unionization and Worker Power

• Promotes sectorial bargaining to improve worker conditions and wages.
• References the decline of union power and its impact on job quality.

Societal Structures and Policies

• Encourages examining personal benefit from government policies.
• Calls for rebalancing welfare priorities.

Community and Advocacy

• Desmond's experience with City Life, an organization fighting foreclosures.
• Importance of community mobilization and support.

Health and Poverty

• Links poverty to health disparities and life expectancy.
• Emphasizes the need for improved healthcare access.

AI and the Future of Work

• Predicts AI will transform the job market, continuing the trend of unstable work.

The Role of Fear

• Discusses the fear of economic insecurity and its societal impacts.

Closing Thoughts

• Desmond argues for optimism and action in solving poverty.
• Advocates for recognizing collective responsibility in addressing socioeconomic issues.

Desmond's Personal Insights

• Desmond's early jobs and influences reflect his understanding of diverse social experiences.
• Personal mantra: Recognizing being part of a larger community provides comfort.
• Key message: "We can end poverty."