By: Tom Kemeny, Associate Professor, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto.
May 7, 2025
Wealth distribution across the U.S. has transformed since 1960. Inequality between the nation’s flourishing urban centers and other areas of the country, especially in parts of the South and Midwest, is higher than it has ever been over the previous 60 years. Wealth enables choice and stability. Poorer households have more trouble providing the best nutrition and education for their children. Additionally, people growing up in lower-wealth households are less likely to spur innovation in a field or start successful new businesses. Wealth also profoundly affects one’s health, leaving the least wealthy in our society significantly more vulnerable to premature death and disability.