Award-winning film on national economist screens Wednesday
Janel Shoun-Smith |
Inequality For All
HumanDocs Film Series
Wednesday, Feb. 26
8:30 p.m., Shamblin Theatre
Free and open to the public.
The February edition of the HumanDocs Film Series will feature "Inequality For All," an engaging look at the steady growth in income inequality in the United States. Featuring the expertise and good-natured sense of humor of economist Robert Reich, Bill Clinton's Secretary of Labor, "Inequality for All" explores the perils of an economy that continues to channel wealth upward, threatening prosperity for all of us. "Inequality For All" won the special jury prize at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. The film will be followed by panel discussion featuring local experts.
The HumanDocs Film Series is presented in partnership with the Nashville Film Festival and Nashville Public Television. For more information on this event, contact Ted Park at ted.parks [at] lipscomb.edu or at 615.966.6616.
About Robert Reich
Reich, the central figure of the film, is Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley, and was Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. Time Magazine named him one of the ten most effective cabinet secretaries of the twentieth century. He has written thirteen books, including the best-sellers “Aftershock” and “The Work of Nations.” His latest, “Beyond Outrage,” is now out in paperback. He is also a founding editor of the American Prospect magazine and chairman of Common Cause.
Statement by Robert Reich (from the Inequality For All website):
"We’re in the biggest economic slump since the Great Depression, and we can’t seem to get out of it. Why? Because, exactly as in the 1920s, so much of the nation’s income and wealth are going to the top, that the vast middle class doesn’t have the purchasing power to keep the economy going.
"People are stressed. They’re angry and frustrated, and the tide is only rising on that front. Their debt obligations are staggering, yet (if lucky enough to have a job), they’re working harder and longer than ever before. People need to understand what’s happening to them – because from their perspective, the picture looks pretty bleak.
"Until we can take a step back and understand the big picture, we can’t do anything to get ourselves out of this mess. Our democracy as we know it depends on it."