Sanders to Give Major Speech on the State of US Working Class

Sen. Bernie Sanders announced Thursday that he will give a major speech on the state of the working class in the United States next week as he continues to push his fellow policymakers to work in the interest of the vast majority of Americans who make up the lower and middle class, instead of powerful corporations and the wealthy.

The Independent senator from Vermont plans to take stock of the economic realities facing millions of households across the country as corporate profits soar and workers demand fair wages, benefits, and working conditions in a number of industries.

Working families across the U.S. are struggling to stay afloat "at a time of unprecedented income and wealth inequality," said the senator ahead of the speech, which is scheduled to take place Tuesday, January 17 at 7:00 pm Eastern.

"Before we can effectively go forward in terms of economic policy, it's necessary to know where we are at," said Sanders. "And for working families in this country, the situation is not good."

While inflation slowed in December according to Consumer Price Index data released Thursday, food prices continued to rise. As Common Dreams reported Wednesday, children across the country are once again struggling to pay for school meals months after Republicans blocked a proposed extension of pandemic aid that enabled school districts to provide universal free breakfast and lunch.

The Washington Postreported last summer that in at least 15 states, officials at shelters for unhoused people reported "a dramatic increase in the number of people, particularly single mothers, seeking services," with waitlists doubling or tripling "in a matter of months."

"Real inflation-adjusted weekly wages for the average American worker are lower today than they were 50 years ago," said Sanders Thursday. "Over 60% of American workers are living paycheck to paycheck, 85 million are uninsured or underinsured, nearly 600,000 are homeless, and millions are unable to afford housing, childcare, or higher education."

"Now is the time for Congress—Democrats, Republicans, and Independents—to have the courage to take on the lobbyists and powerful special interests," added the senator, "and show the American people that our government can work for them, and not just the 1%."

Sanders will give the speech at the U.S. Capitol visitor's center in Washington, D.C., and the event will be livestreamed on his Twitter and Facebook pages.