French economist joined Fronteiras do Pensamento, a series of lectures supported by PUCRS
Thomas Piketty
Photos: Luiz Munhoz/Fronteiras do Pensamento
“We know too little about inequality, we need more transparency”. That was one of the initial lines of French economist Thomas Piketty, who wrote the best seller “The capital in the 21st century”. The lecture was delivered on Thursday, Sept 28, as part of Fronteiras do Pensamento, at the Araújo Viana Auditorium , in Porto Alegre.
Although he did not mention it in his book, he went on to expand his research on inequalities to countries such as Brazil, South Africa and India, as well as the Middle East. From 2001 to 2015, Brazil, according to the World Wrath & Income Database, despite being “one of the most unequal countries in the world”, fared slightly better than the poorer countries. “Minimum wage increased and the advent of Bolsa Família were some of the factors that played an important role in it. On the other hand, the income of the richest accounted for 28% of the country’s total income”, explains she. In his view, the country urges to implement tax reforms, especially progressive taxes and a new inheritance system.
Thomas Piketty lecture
Piketty compared the histories of Western Europe and the USA, which treaded different paths. After WW1 and WW2, inequalities became stabilized from 1950 to 1970. However, from the Reagan era, in the 1980s, Americans changed dramatically, as the poorest were relegated. “According to US economists, much of that is owed to globalization. In my opinion, there are other factors to be accountable for it. Access to universities, for instance, is more restricted. The expressive increase of top executives’ salaries is another. And the weakening of trade unions and participation of low income individuals as well”, comments he. In Europe, the gap between classes was narrower. To his mind, there is a huge gap to be bridged in terms of meritocracy and transparency to information is essential. “The society can then push the government to achieve viable goals”, highlights he.
The emergence of nationalist practices is worrisome, said Piketty. The election of Donald Trump, in the USA, and the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union (Brexit) are symptoms of this inequality. In his opinion, the frustration with politics cannot be used to blame minority groups. “We need to organize the tax system in order to keep the low income population from paying the same taxes that the high income population does”, ponders he.
Season 2017 of project Fronteiras do Pensamento is guided by the topic Civilização – a sociedade e seus valores (Civilization – society and its values). Relying on cultural support from PUCRS, up until December internationally recognized guests will be coming to Porto Alegre to address the quest for reconstruction, conscience and redemption of values.
