Quote:
Originally Posted by m3racer
What annual gross income qualifies one to be in the "middle class of America"?
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This discussion reminded me of an Oprah show I saw, so I looked it up online. On the Oprah site I found a breakdown of the different classes by income.
"According to The New York Times' Class Matters series and the U.S. Census Bureau statistics from 2000 and 2003, if you make up to $25,000 per year, you are lower class; if you make between $25,000–$70,000, you are middle class; if you make over $70,000 per year, you are upper class."
Of course the $25,000-$70,000 number is from 2003. With time and inflation, I would definitely say that number has gone up and is probably closer to $40,000.
Also on the show it talked about since we don't usually see people's pay checks, people look at other factors to determine social class. The expert on the Oprah show said that there are three common indicators of class: weight, teeth and dialect (language).
Also the show mentioned part of defining social class is a "family's ability to provide their children with a quality education, health care and access to other resources."