Poverty & Popularism

On the road to nowhere 

If Trump wins, which is sadly becoming more likely, what lessons can Australia take from this? Populists like Trump thrive on issues like institutionalised inequality'. If people loose hope in democratic institutions then they turn to populists like Trump.

Australia's inequality levels are growing. During the current cost of living crisis the very poorest have been hurt the most and have been the ones doing the heavy lifting in cutting spending and relying more and more on soup kitchens, sorry Food Banks.

Our politicians and media report endlessly on the economy but when was the last time you heard either of these groups report on how many Australians are living well below the poverty line? Decades ago this figure was always reported with the other economic figures but because politicians were ashamed at how it continued to grow these figures are now hidden amongst a trove of other ABS reports.

We ignore institutionalised poverty and inequality at out own peril. Without hope we may find our own home grown version of Trump leading our country