A review by malloryjohnson
Under the Affluence: Shaming the Poor, Praising the Rich and Sacrificing the Future of America by Tim Wise

4.0

This book is focused on the culture of cruelty and shame the United States has around the poor and how our false narrative of meritocracy has exacerbated inequality. Wise has a great deal of empirical evidence to support his claims (which can be a bit much to sift through), but ultimately comes up with some pretty straightforward recommendations: that we shift the narrative away from blind meritocracy to acknowledge inequalities in our country and be willing to talk about the racial privilege and government support that allows us to be successful (such as great public schools that offered substantial opportunity for academic achievement down the line) and that we generate a culture of compassion in America that will allow us to come closer to creating equality of opportunity.