Wealth inequality was on gold-gilded display last month at President Trump’s “Great Gatsby”-themed Halloween party. Hours before 42 million Americans were about to lose their SNAP food benefits, Trump and his rich friends feasted on delicacies and sipped champagne. The theme of the event was “A Little Party Never Hurt Anybody” – the title of a song from a 2013 Great Gatsby film. It was clearly not evident to the party’s attendees that their gross wealth accumulation is in fact hurting people, as working Americans face housing instability, food insecurity, and threats to their health insurance.
While dancers shimmied in white feathered headdresses and performed inside a giant martini glass, the government shutdown reached the one month mark. Federal workers who are missing paychecks during the shutdown are lining up at food banks around the country. Meanwhile, at the Mar-a-Lago Halloween party, politicians and billionaires lined up for a dessert buffet of macaroons and cheesecakes.
Although Trump has faced criticism for this ostentatious display of wealth, it’s not his lack of subtlety that should be most disturbing here. Whether concealed behind closed doors or celebrated via extravagant parties, the ruling class’s accumulation of unimaginable sums of wealth is built on the exploitation of working people. This does not have to be our reality – we have the power to build a society that shares the world’s resources in a way that makes sense for everyone.
