Runaway Inequality

An activist’s guide to economic justice.

Runaway Inequality does more than make sense of our economic plight. It also shows why virtually all the key issues that we face―from climate change to the exploding prison population―are intimately connected to rising economic inequality.

Most importantly, Runaway Inequality calls upon us to build a common movement to tackle the sources of increasing income and wealth inequality. As the author, Les Leopold, makes clear, the problem will not cure itself. It will take enormous energy and dedication to bring economic justice and fairness back to American society.

The book is divided into four parts:

• Part I: What is the fundamental cause of runaway economic inequality? What has made our economy less fair and left most of us less secure?
• Part II: How does the United States really compare with other major developed countries?  How do we stack up on quality of life, health, and well-being?
• Part III:  What does economic inequality have to do with so many of the critical issues we face, including taxes, debt, education, criminal justice, racism, climate change, foreign trade, and war?
• Part IV: What concrete steps can we take to begin building a fair and just society?

In the words of the book: “There is nothing in the economic universe that will automatically rescue us from runaway inequality. There is no pendulum, no invisible political force that ‘naturally’ will swing back towards economic fairness. Either we wage a large-scale battle for economic, social, and environmental justice, or we will witness the continued deterioration of the world we inhabit. The arc of capitalism does not bend towards justice. We must bend it.”

For more information, or to purchase the book, visit runawayinequality.org.