A large middle class has a stabilizing influence on a society and in the United States the middle class has been highly valued for many years.[1] The real incomes of families rose steadily between the 1950’s and 1970’s from $14,832 to $27,338.[2] Then two things happened that have had a fundamental impact on the American family. First was the rise in prices and the stagnation of real income due to the inflation of the 1970’s. At about the same time, women started entering the workforce in large numbers. The resulting double income households were either able to maintain their standard of living or in some cases two salaries were sufficient to lift families out of the middle class.[3] This shift allowed most families to maintain their middle class status for awhile, however real incomes have not continued to grow and were only $27,735 in 2000[4] and the middle class has been declining as previous middle class citizens have shifted to either the upper or lower classes.
The middle class is important for society for two main reasons. Firstly, having a large middle class provides a strong economic engine. Their spending power causes demand for products and services and their earning power provides revenue to the government through taxes. The small upper class spends more total dollars per person, however there are far fewer of them so they cannot create the same mass demand as a strong middle class. Secondly, in a two class society, the upper class is usually the minority with the vast majority of people in the lower class which leads to an un-harmonious society. Historically, this situation has led to an increased risk of unrest and corruption and a generally less stable society.