Dialogue - Basic Income for All … and other ways to close the income gap

Lightly-regulated capitalism leads to boom-bust cycles and these cycles threaten the livelihood and survival of the middle class and the poor in times of crisis, such as the Great Depression of the 1930s and Great Recession in the past decade. A wealthy country like the United States needs a solution for shifting public wealth and stagnation of incomes that have led to poverty and income inequality. Could raising income taxes for the wealthy fund new programs and help reduce income inequality? Could universal basic income —essentially “Social Security for All”— combat poverty? Is guaranteed income — a guarantee that all citizens or families have an income sufficient to live on, provided they meet certain conditions — a solution?

We will discuss these and other policy ideas with Dr. Lynn Parramore, senior research analyst at the Institute for New Economic Thinking, and Dr. Darrick Hamilton, executive director of the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity. Moderated by Dr. Trevor Brown, dean of the John Glenn College of Public Affairs.