New government data shows economic inequality continued to widen in the
United States last year. The Census Bureau reports the wealthiest
Americans increased their share of total wealth by 4.9 percent, while
the median income reached its lowest level since 1995. Some 46.2 million
Americans were classified as living in poverty. We’re joined by Tavis
Smiley and Cornel West, who are attempting to start a national dialogue
with their new Poverty Tour 2.0, visiting four battleground states:
Ohio, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Florida. West is a professor at the
Union Theological Seminary and prolific author. Smiley is an
award-winning TV and radio broadcaster who hosts the PBS TV show, "Tavis Smiley." Together they are co-authors of the book, "The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto."
In part two of our interview with Tavis Smiley and Prof. Cornel West,
they discuss growing up in working-class households. "I saw so much
poverty growing up," says Smiley, who lived with 13 family members in a
three-bedroom trailer and learned that even when he was not optimistic,
he could be hopeful. "Hope needs help," Smiley notes. West recalls how
he worked with the Black Panthers to organize a general strike while
growing up in Sacramento, California, in order to push for
African-American studies programs in local high schools. Looking at
current events, Smiley and West cite Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s
comment that "war is the enemy of the poor." They compare the amount of
money spent on the war in Iraq, and the 2012 presidential campaign, to
funding for programs that assist the one in two Americans who are now
poor. Click here to see part one of this interview.