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posted by Jason Kottke  ·  gift link

W.E.B. Du Bois Defines Prosperity

black and white photograph of W.E.B. Du Bois

In a 1953 speech called On the Future of the American Negro, W.E.B. Du Bois spoke about wealth inequality and his vision for measuring prosperity:

Work is service, not gain. The object of work is life, not income. The reward of production is plenty, not private fortune. We should measure the prosperity of a nation not by the number of millionaires but by the absence of poverty, the prevalence of health, the efficiency of the public schools, and the number of people who can and do read worthwhile books.

Democracy Now has a recording of part of Du Bois’ speech (starting at 5:48).