Introduction

Universal basic income has been talked about quite frequently in recent years, with issues like poverty, economic inequality and the pandemic sparking more and more conversations on testing out UBC (Universal basic income) and maybe even implementing it in the future. This essay will explain what UBC is, the history of UBC, and the arguments against it.

Overview

UBI has had a bit of history dating all the way back to the 1700s. For example, “Ancestors of UBI were discussed by the likes of Thomas Paine (1797) in the form of a lump sum granted to all citizens at adulthood” (What Is Ubi: Stanford Basic Income Lab). It has been occasionally put down by other perspectives and programs and has been defended on multiple occasions also. Over the years, Ubi has grown from being just a proposal to being legitimate policy that could potentially be used all around in the future (What Is Ubi: Stanford Basic Income Lab). There has been an increase in the number of experiments with the different techniques that can be used for UBI. For example, a certain population is given a set monthly income, these statistics are then evaluated to see if it was successful or not. In my opinion, I believe that UBI will be in the future considering its gain in popularity in the political area recently. I feel as though it will effectively improve the problems we currently have associated with economic inequality.

Lastly, UBI has had many arguments against it. The first one is that it is too expensive. People have stated that “UBI is just replacing one pricey system for another” (Brittany Hunter). While they may think this, UBI might just be able to improve the economic problems we are facing. The next issue is that UBI could be easily taken for granted. Many people think that the people who truly need it will not use it in the right way which will make it ineffective. Overall, Ubi has some advantages and disadvantages (Hunter).

Introduction

Poverty; a never ending fall that seems to be growing bigger every day. Discrimination against language and culture can make it very hard for people to obtain jobs. Beth Nguyen’s “American Stories are Refugee Stories,” Nguyen shows life as a refugee, and how hard it is to become “normal” in a world with such prejudice and disapproval. Nguyen pushes on the fact that the lack of knowledge and other resources makes it extremely difficult for refugees to be successful. In Ehrenreich’s “Serving in Florida,” the prevalence of minority candidates competing for service jobs is very prominent. There are many barriers that are preventing people to acquire any type of wealth and to be accepted, whether it be the low-income jobs or the struggle of being “different,” baby bonds might just be the solution to economic inequality.

Analysis of the Problem

Low paying jobs will often demand an impossible workload. Ehrenreich had first-hand experience with working in a low-wage job with such problems.

I rule out various occupations for one reason or another: hotel front-desk clerk, for example, which to my surprise is regarded as unskilled and pays only $6 or $7 an hour, gets eliminated because it involves standing in one spot for eight hours a day. Waitressing is also something I’d like to avoid, because I remember it leaving me bone-tired when I was eighteen, and I’m decades of varicosities and back pain beyond that now. Telemarketing, one of the first refuges of the suddenly indigent, can be dismissed on grounds of personality.

The amount of labor one must do to get paid so little is not worth anyone's time. The author is quick to realize that low-wage jobs like that are not worth it. So, in summary, many jobs are just a scam desperate for workers; with no sympathy for the well-being of their staff. Ehrenreich mentions several times how people struggling with low-income have to go through many obstacles to attain any wealth at all. On the other hand, Nguyen adds on to the topic of economic inequality by going in-depth on what refugees went through and the hardships they faced. They are forced to forget everything about their past and learn a whole new lifestyle. Nguyen talks about her story and how she got where she is today. Nguyen states, “What if in trying to navigate this new cold world you tried to ask questions at stores, but people just stared and said, I can’t understand you. Speak up. Speak English. What if people told you, go back to where you came from, as if you could?” (Nguyen). They were told to just ignore what others said about them and that they should be grateful to live where they do. This shows how they were judged just based on their ethnicity and are expected to be fully capable of doing these new foreign things. Furthermore, this shows how they were not given a fair chance to show they can improve and learn. This prejudice towards them can make it very complicated when it comes to getting a job, especially since they end up with low-wage jobs. These problems just further confirm the true difficulty of obtaining any acquired wealth when you are at or below the poverty line. The prejudice combined with the other struggles is a very prominent problem that is widening the gap between racial inequality and preventing the poor from gaining any sort of wealth.