Note: Last week the University of Texas announced plans to provide tuition-free admission  to students from families earning less than $100,000 per year. M.I.T., Carnegie-Mellon, and Brandeis followed with similar programs. The essay that follows was published here in 2020 at the height of the George Floyd demonstrations. It bears repeating. 

Was Bernie On The Right Path?

On January 6, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed a joint session of Congress. As Hitler was taking control of Europe, the sentiment in the U.S. was to stay out of the war. Roosevelt believed our involvement was inevitable. In his address, he argued that all people deserved to live under the protection of four freedoms: Freedom of Speech; Freedom of Religion; Freedom from Want; Freedom from Fear.

As we witness the upheaval in our country today two things are clear. Without question we enjoy freedom of religion. And, based on the massive demonstrations sparked by the death of George Floyd—covered 24/7 by a free and vigorous press—we certainly enjoy freedom of speech.

Tragically, the peaceful demonstrations have been marred by violence, arson, and looting. Whether the bad actors are anarchists or opportunists doesn’t matter. They demean a just and righteous cause.

Why does this happen in the United States, again and again? I’m old enough to remember Watts in 1965, Martin Luther King’s assassination in 1968, Rodney King in 1992, and now the violence on the fringes of demonstrations for George Floyd.

The answer is rooted in what has happened to our society over the past six decades. In a 2010 study of the distribution of wealth in the U.S., a study group was asked what they thought the ideal distribution of wealth should be. Dividing the population into five equal parts (quintiles), the respondents said the ideal distribution should be (from top to bottom): 32% / 23% / 20% / 14% / 11%.

The study group was reportedly shocked to learn the top quintile owned 85% of all wealth, and the bottom two quintiles combined owned less than 1%. (See the chart at right.) Since 2010, the top quintile has only increased its share.

This illustrates the devastating decline of the Middle Class in our country. But it is something more. It is a prescription for disaster, if not insurrection. Is it any wonder that in times of public upheaval, there are gangs of opportunists ready to break windows, loot, and burn?

So, what do we do about it? I suggest Bernie Sanders was on the right path.

Bernie advocated all public colleges and universities should be free. One immediate pushback was why should college be free for kids from wealthy families? They can certainly afford the cost of a four-year degree and more. I agree.

Instead, let’s start with all the kids from the bottom two quintiles of wealth distribution and guarantee a college or university education. Let’s also recognize that not all kids have the interest or aptitude for college. Let’s provide a vocational track for those so inclined. We need doctors, lawyers, business majors, educators, etc. We also need plumbers, electricians, carpenters, mechanics, and welders—all skills that provide a living wage.

What if every child from the poorest segments of society knew that college, or training for a vocation, was guaranteed upon graduation from high school? What impact would that have on our communities and our nation? Can we lift people out of poverty through education?

People with education and the skills to earn a living wage become consumers, not looters. They buy homes, refrigerators, stoves, dishwashers, cars, and all the other goods and services that make up our economy. Why not create more consumers?

You might say, “Great goal, pal. But who’s gonna pay for it?” First, we are already paying for it—in our prison systems, our frayed social safety net, anarchy in the streets, and so many other negative ways. Second, we can afford it. Look at the trillions of dollars appropriated to fight the coronavirus pandemic. We can find the money if we have the will.

The elementary school I attended opened in 1942 during FDR’s third term. You entered the school through the front door into a modest rotunda. Around the cornice of the rotunda, in bold letters, were Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms: Freedom of Speech; Freedom of Religion; Freedom from Want; Freedom from Fear.

I passed through that rotunda nearly every day for seven years. I grew up believing those ideals were what America was all about. Today we have a firm grip on religious freedom and freedom of speech. We do not have Freedom from Want or Freedom from Fear. As a nation, we can choose to provide those freedoms. The time to begin is now.

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