'Inequality For All' Review

For the last two weeks in the Copenhagen School of Global Health MSc Global Health course, we have been exploring the topic of social inequality as part of our Strategies for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention module led by Ingelise Andersen. Therefore when a fellow peer, recommended for me to watch the 2013 documentary ‘’Inequality for all’’, it seemed quite well timed. Also it was an American recommending a documentary about America. Like many others, I have always been fascinated with the complex multi faceted nature of one of the most powerful nations in the world, so this recommendation was seen as an pre approval of the legitimacy of the film. 

However as the titles rolled, I was instantly flooded with scepticism when the Weinstein Company logo arose. I thought that this may be another of those crafted and ill-informed ‘Michael Moore Esque’ documentaries. However I was thankfully incorrect. 

The documentary begins with a series of media and political quotes of ‘class warfare’ sweeping the states, but is brought crashing down to earth when the USA’s GINI rank of 69th in the world is stated. Thus the documentary’s aims to shake the assumptions which surround this debated and misrepresented topic of Inequality. 

The story is told through the narrator and curator Robert Reich, ex labour secretary under the Clinton Administration. However it is not a personal biopic of this charismatic scholar, but told through a clever mix of his personal and historical connections. Whether this be through his lecturing a class of students in University of California at Berkeley, the historical bridge timeline, or his experiences working in the US government, it is a flexible and tangible structure. 

It has plenty of hard hitting facts which you would expect from this genre, such as the average annual middle class wage dropping from $48,302 to $33,0000 between 1978 and 2010. Combine this with the US top 1% earning between a minimum of $380,000 to over $10,000,000 annually, with considerably less tax compared to the average American, it is clear where the line has been drawn in the sand.

The middle class focus continues with small stories from Erika who works in Costco with $25 in her account, mounting childcare costs, and a recently made redundant husband who has now turned to education as a source of future employment prosperity. These can feel a little cliche, however they do serve the purpose of providing tangible examples, and are woven into the documentary’s structure. 

The feature also aims to debunk the theory that the rich create jobs, when in reality the rich invest their money overseas and don’t necessarily spend their wealth. There is also a strong focus on the political impact of ‘post Regan', along with the demise of trade unions, and the rise of globalisation and technology. One example I particularly liked was the tangible interactive iPhone example of students guessing how much money goes accordingly to the different nations involved in the phone’s manufacture. 

Moving back to humans, there is a strong focus on Reich’s belief to invest in humans, especially in education. The virtuous cycle is represented in a clear and concise animation, which is equally as effect when reversed into the ‘viscous cycle’. Finally the article focuses on the negative influence of the ‘fat cats getting fatter’ and the manipulative side of funding and lobbyists in politics and policy setting. 

However it is not all doom and gloom. Reich is not only a warm and humorous character, he also is inspiring in his passionate presentation. He points to the movements of the Tea Party and the Occupy Wall Street movement as examples of positive public groups, and how such examples have been seen historically and been hugely successful and influential. However his main focus is to the students whom he is addressing. He states that he believes very much in the next generation of activists and that ‘politics doesn’t start out there, but in here’.

Overall this was an enjoyable and informative documentary. It is not entirely groundbreaking information, however it is presented in a engaging and tangible manner which allows all individuals to enjoy and understand the documentary. My only criticism of the documentary, apart from the use of the Dolly Parton’s classic song ‘’Nine till Five’’, is that there is little reference to the lower class. I respect that the American middle class are portrayed here as the key economic changers, however in research we know that the lower classes are affected by inequality the most, with often devastating consequences in the biopsychosocial model. 

You can watch Inequality For All on Netflix by clicking here