Card Game Company Highlights Wealth Inequality in the US

Category: Business

Listening

Unlocking Word Meanings

Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.

  1. impoverished / ɪmˈpɒv ər ɪʃt / (adj) – very poor
    Example:

    The impoverished family begs on the streets to survive.


  2. ethnicity / ɛθˈnɪs ɪ ti / (n) – a group of people with the same culture, customs, and origin
    Example:

    The survey will also ask you about your ethnicity.


  3. portion / ˈpɔr ʃən, ˈpoʊr- / (n) – a part of a larger amount
    Example:

    A portion of our earnings will go to a charity of our choice.


  4. affluent / ˈæf lu ənt / (adj) – very rich
    Example:

    Affluent people can afford to buy luxuries.


  5. household / ˈhaʊsˌhoʊld / (n) – the people in a house considered as one group
    Example:

    Many households had to decrease their expenses because of the recession.


Article

Read the text below.

A company came up with a new promotion to confront wealth inequality in the United States.


Developers of the party game Cards Against Humanity have decided to spotlight wealth inequality by giving back to their impoverished subscribers through a promotion called ‘Cards Against Humanity Saves America.’


The company sent out surveys to those who expressed interest in the promotion and obtained details such as their address, debt status, ethnicity, gender, health, occupation, and sexual orientation. The company then used these pieces of information to estimate the financial standing of their subscribers.


Around 150,000 people signed up for the promotion. Each person paid $15 to participate, unaware of what will happen to their money.


Later, the company unveiled its plan to distribute the money from the promotion among its poorest subscribers based on the survey data. Of all the individuals who joined, only the 100 poorest participants got $1,000 each, while the next 10,000 poorest individuals got their $15 back. The rest did not receive any money at all.


The promotion was done at a time when wealth inequality in the United States has become worse.


Since 2013, the portion of wealth owned by the most affluent 1% of American households has increased by almost three percentage points. This is in contrast with the lower 90%, whose portion has fallen in previous decades. Recent figures also show that 1% of American households control 40% of the country’s money, while 20% are either broke or in debt.


Viewpoint Discussion

Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.

Discussion A

• Would you be interested to participate in a similar promotion? Why or why not?
• Do you think the promotion succeeded in spotlighting wealth inequality? Defend your answer.

Discussion B

• In your opinion, is there wealth inequality in your country? Why do you say so?
• How do you think wealth inequality can be addressed?