An ancient photograph inherited from my mother shows her mother’s family gathered for a family photo on their farm in Tennessee. One child is barefoot. Grim faces stare at the viewer.

Also passed down is another photo portraying most of the same family members grown older, with spouses and children. They are now nicely dressed like any middle-class family of the time would be. All, including the children, wear shoes. Their greater prosperity is apparent.

That progression of pictures depicts the journey of many Americans from the late 1800’s through most of the twentieth century. The story is of whole generations lifted from a subsistence lifestyle.

Today, figures indicate not just a halt to that growth but a reversal. Inequality has also increased between the wealthy and the rest of Americans. These trends were in place before the recession that began in 2008.

As the employment rate picks up, we need to insure that the wages of working Americans support a decent standard of living.