Tax the Rich: From Slogan to Action

I work for Michigan Education Justice Coalition as a school board organizer. I was recently at an event with MEJC to talk to people about our ballot initiative, Invest in MI Kids. It is a Constitutional Amendment to fund K-12 schools in Michigan with a 5% fair share surcharge on annual taxable income over $1,000,000 for joint filers and over $500,000 for individuals.

It was an amazing experience, and I had a ton of amazing conversations. I really enjoyed asking people if they wanted to tax the rich to fund public schools. People get really excited about taxing the rich, but less excited to do the work to make it a reality.

With this ballot initiative, we have the opportunity to take the slogan “Tax the Rich” and turn it into action to make it a reality.

Taxing the rich is something we have talked about for decades. A once radical phrase, it has become commonplace. In the 18th century, Jean Jacques Rousseau said, “When the people shall have nothing more to eat, they will eat the rich.” And it was JJR who attributed “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche”, let them eat cake, to a “great princess” (cough: Marie-Antoinette). Personally, I would rather tax them than eat them. I am sure they would too.

The reality is we did tax the rich in the early 1960s. America’s wealthiest were taxed 91 percent on their income. So, what happened? Presidents lobbied Congress to cut taxes on their wealthy friends. John F. Kennedy, a product of the wealthy class, asked Congress to reduce the tax rate for the wealthiest to 65 percent. Ronald Reagan cut the tax rate to 50 percent and then slashed it again to 28 percent. Why has income inequality grown, and the number of billionaires and millionaires has skyrocketed? Because their tax bill was drastically reduced, estate taxes have decreased, and the wealthy keep getting richer.

The Pew Research Center released a report in January 2020 about Trends in U.S. income and wealth inequality. They reported that “The wealthiest families are also the only ones to have experienced gains in wealth in the years after the start of the Great Recession in 2007”. The Great Recession was the longest economic downturn since World War II.

TLDR version: There is too much income inequality in the United States. The less money you have, the more you see income inequality as a problem in need of fixing. As Fredrick Douglass said, “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them, and these will continue till they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.”

We can begin to address income inequality by ensuring we have an educated workforce and taxing the wealthy. Let’s do both: tax the rich to fund public schools.

On July 31st, MEJC is heading back to the Board of Canvassers to approve our ballot initiative. Once approved, we have 180 days to collect 700,000 signatures. We're building this campaign with people power -- neighbors talking to neighbors, volunteers stepping up. We need your help to collect signatures. But in order to collect signatures, you need training. MEJC can provide you with all the training you need. Learn more at Invest in MI Kids and help us pack the room on 7/31

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