--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in…" description: "\"“While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in manufacturing went up per capita 1.4 percent a year, the holders of common stocks gained 16.4 percent a year. Si..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg" --- # While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in manufacturing went… ![“While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in manufacturing went up per capita 1.4 percent a year, the holders of common stocks gained 16.4 percent a year. Six million families (42 percent of the total) made less than $1,000 a year. One-tenth of 1 percent of the families at the top received as much income…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg) > ““While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in manufacturing went up per capita 1.4 percent a year, the holders of common stocks gained 16.4 percent a year. Six million families (42 percent of the total) made less than $1,000 a year. One-tenth of 1 percent of the families at the top received as much income as 42 percent of the families at the bottom, according to a report of the Brookings Institution. Every”” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights stark income inequality, showing stock owners earned far more than wage workers, and a tiny elite captured a disproportionate share of wealth. **In simple terms:** Rich get richer while many stay poor. Key Takeaway Recognize and address systemic wealth gaps. Themes inequality wealth distribution economic disparity Mood concerned critical Type analytical informative When to use this quote - policy debates - financial planning - social advocacy - educational curricula Key Concepts Capital gains labor wages wealth concentration Questions to Reflect On - How do modern investment returns compare to wages? - What policies could reduce such gaps? A Different Perspective The data may be outdated and not reflect current dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Common Stocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-stocks-341960/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Investing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/investing/) [Percent Families](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent-families-433722/) [Percent Year](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent-year-2270545/) [Real Wages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-wages-545576/) [Wages Manufacturing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wages-manufacturing-4949206/) ## Related quotes > [“When I wrote Lean In, some people argued that I did not spend enough time writing about the difficulties women face when they don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/when-i-wrote-lean-in-some-people-argued-that-i-did-not-spend-enough/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“In 1950, 10 percent of families had television sets and 38 percent had never seen a TV program. Although 33 million of America's roughly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-t-patterson/in-1950-10-percent-of-families-had-television-sets-and-38-percent-had/) [James T. Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-t-patterson/) > [By 2015, the top 1 percent of families took home more than 20 percent of income. Wealth distribution was 10 times worse than that:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-cox-richardson/by-2015-the-top-1-percent-of-families-took-home-more-than-20-percent/) [Heather Cox Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-cox-richardson/) > [If your credit is going to grow at 10-15 percent per year in order to get your 5 percent GDP growth per year, eventually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adair-turner-baron-turner-of-ecchinswell/if-your-credit-is-going-to-grow-at-10-15-percent-per-year-in-order-to/) [Adair Turner, Baron Turner of Ecchinswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adair-turner-baron-turner-of-ecchinswell/) > [Doing films as an actor, you spend maybe 40 percent of the year doing your chosen profession. If you are on a successful TV…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-ricci/doing-films-as-an-actor-you-spend-maybe-40-percent-of-the-year-doing/) [Christina Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-ricci/) > [“if we consider the total growth of the US economy in the thirty years prior to the crisis, that is, from 1977 to 2007,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-piketty/if-we-consider-the-total-growth-of-the-us-economy-in-the-thirty-years/) [Thomas Piketty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-piketty/) > [I think I could make you fifty percent a year on one million dollars. No, I know I could. I guarantee that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/i-think-i-could-make-you-fifty-percent-a-year-on-one-million-dollars/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [In addition to joblessness, of course, by the working of supply and demand, when you have a larger number of people unemployed, wages do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-bishop/in-addition-to-joblessness-of-course-by-the-working-of-supply-and/) [Tim Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-bishop/) > [Real wages for male workers in the United States are about what they were in the '60s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/real-wages-for-male-workers-in-the-united-states-are-about-what-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [During the 1960s, rising real wages for low-income and high-income workers, due in part to rapid economic growth and the spread of unionization, worked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-coontz/during-the-1960s-rising-real-wages-for-low-income-and-high-income/) [Stephanie Coontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-coontz/) > [Real median household incomes in the U.S. were basically the same in 1989 as in 2014. But we are also seeing similar challenges in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-mazzucato/real-median-household-incomes-in-the-u-s-were-basically-the-same-in/) [Mariana Mazzucato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-mazzucato/) > [“Real wages have been declining for twenty years. People are working harder, they have to work longer hours, they have less security things are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/real-wages-have-been-declining-for-twenty-years-people-are-working/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Average real wages in Mexican manufacturing are lower than they were 10 years ago, if you can believe that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-f-lynch/average-real-wages-in-mexican-manufacturing-are-lower-than-they-were/) [Stephen F. Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-f-lynch/) > [Inflation outstripped real wages for people who work for pay from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-bishop/inflation-outstripped-real-wages-for-people-who-work-for-pay-from/) [Tim Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-bishop/) > [If workmen are denied any increase in real wages and they can look forward only to a better standard of living through reduction of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-e-wilson/if-workmen-are-denied-any-increase-in-real-wages-and-they-can-look/) [Charles E. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-e-wilson/) ## More by Howard Zinn > [“A black man, Benjamin Banneker, who taught himself mathematics and astronomy, predicted accurately a solar eclipse, and was appointed to plan the new city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-black-man-benjamin-banneker-who-taught-himself-mathematics-and/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-no-flag-large-enough-to-cover-the-shame-of-killing-innocent/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The mountain of history books under which we all stand leans so heavily in the other direction-so tremblingly respectful of states and statesmen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mountain-of-history-books-under-which-we-all-stand-leans-so/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/let-s-face-a-historical-truth-we-have-never-had-a-free-market-we-have/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I can UNDERSTAND pessimism, but I don't BELIEVE in it. It's not simply a matter of faith, but of historical EVIDENCE. Not overwhelming evidence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/i-can-understand-pessimism-but-i-don-t-believe-in-it-it-s-not-simply/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it. It is a corrective to the sluggishness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/protest-beyond-the-law-is-not-a-departure-from-democracy-it-is/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Now I have been studying very closely what happens every day in the courts in Boston, Massachusetts. You would be astounded--maybe you wouldn't, maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/now-i-have-been-studying-very-closely-what-happens-every-day-in-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Sexual purity was to be the special virtue of a woman. It was assumed that men, as a matter of biological nature, would sin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/sexual-purity-was-to-be-the-special-virtue-of-a-woman-it-was-assumed/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Middle-class Americans might be invited to join a new elite by attacks against the corruption of the established rich. The New Yorker Cadwallader Colden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/middle-class-americans-might-be-invited-to-join-a-new-elite-by/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-those-in-charge-of-our-society-politicians-corporate-executives/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-were-not-born-critical-of-existing-society-there-was-a-moment-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“George Washington had turned down the requests of blacks, seeking freedom, to fight in the Revolutionary army. So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More Family quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) [Maureen Andeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-andeson/) > [Our concept of a family holiday was going to a guest house in the Lake district or Wales where walking was part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/our-concept-of-a-family-holiday-was-going-to-a-guest-house-in-the/) [Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/) > [“So Jace is my actual family," Kit said. "But I can't go live with him, because him and his hot girlfriend are going off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/so-jace-is-my-actual-family-kit-said-but-i-can-t-go-live-with-him/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/) [Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/) > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [“She knew how to play him so very well. He slipped his hand around hers. "Friends," he repeated roughly. Her smile was bright enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-smith/she-knew-how-to-play-him-so-very-well-he-slipped-his-hand-around-hers/) [Kathryn Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-smith/) > [As a family, we all loved the Flyers. To me, rooting for the Flyers were how I bonded with my dad especially.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-f-goldberg/as-a-family-we-all-loved-the-flyers-to-me-rooting-for-the-flyers-were/) [Adam F. Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-f-goldberg/) > [The people have always been family to me here in Las Vegas. The people have always been very, very kind to me, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-cunningham/the-people-have-always-been-family-to-me-here-in-las-vegas-the-people/) [Randall Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-cunningham/) > [“Your relationship with your brother will be, in many ways, the most complex and bewildering of all the interpersonal connections you will form. An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-currie-jr/your-relationship-with-your-brother-will-be-in-many-ways-the-most/) [Ron Currie Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-currie-jr/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [Family over friends, because real friends are family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/family-over-friends-because-real-friends-are-family/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 36,913 Family quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in manufacturing went up per capita 1.4 percent a year, the holders of common stocks gained 16.4 percent a year. Six million families (42 percent of the total) made less than $1,000 a year. One-tenth of 1 percent of the families at the top received as much income as 42 percent of the families at the bottom, according to a report of the Brookings Institution. Every”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-manufacturing-went-up-per/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Family" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-manufacturing-went-up-per/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/howard-zinn-576_family_while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-ma_608894.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“While from 1922 to 1929 real wages in manufacturing went up per capita 1.4 percent a year, the holders of…” — Howard Zinn", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Howard Zinn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“While from 1922 to 1929 real...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-manufacturing-went-up-per/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/while-from-1922-to-1929-real-wages-in-manufacturing-went-up-per/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```