4 ms·
I took your strata and did some research: 1. The Tiny Ultra Rich (Top 0.1%) ~0.1% of the population ⸻ 2. The Very Rich (Top 1% excluding above) ~0.9% of th
by jschveibinz 1y ago
I took your strata and did some research:
1. The Tiny Ultra Rich (Top 0.1%)
~0.1% of the population
⸻
2. The Very Rich (Top 1% excluding above)
~0.9% of the population
* the top 1% control about 35% of the total wealth
⸻
3. The Moderately Rich (Top 10%, excluding above)
~9% of the population
⸻
4. Shrinking Middle Class (Homeowners with Mortgage, Some Stability)
~25–30% of the population
⸻
5. The Paycheck-to-Paycheck Majority (Working but Financially Precarious)
~40–45% of the population
⸻
6. The Invisible Class (Undocumented, Unhoused, or Living in Vehicles)
~10–15% of the population
In 1900, you might have seen a similar stratification. For example:
Below is a historically grounded approximate breakdown of the adult population by economic stratum in 1900:
⸻
1. Capitalist Elite / Plutocratic Class
~1% of the population
• Industrial tycoons, major landowners, top financiers.
• Controlled a disproportionate share of national wealth (upward of 25–40% in the U.S.).
⸻
2. Upper Middle Class / Bourgeois Professional Class
~5–7% of the population
• High-status professionals, corporate managers, senior civil servants.
• Educated, well-connected, often urban.
⸻
3. Lower Middle Class / Petty Bourgeoisie
~10–15% of the population
• Shopkeepers, skilled tradespeople, clerks, schoolteachers.
• Often lived modest but stable lives; economically vulnerable to downturns.
⸻
4. Urban Working Class (Skilled and Semi-skilled)
~25–30% of the population
• Industrial workers in factories, transportation, and infrastructure.
• Many joined trade unions; others lived paycheck to paycheck in cities.
⸻
5. Rural Laboring Class / Tenant Farmers
~30–40% of the population
• Agricultural workers, sharecroppers, farm tenants.
• Still a dominant population in 1900, especially outside major cities.
•In the U.S., this included a large population of Black agricultural laborers in the South.
⸻
6. Underclass / Casual Labor / Destitute
~10–15% of the population
• Unemployed, chronically poor, recent immigrants in slums, itinerant laborers.
• Often invisible or ignored in public discourse except as objects of reform or charity.