99 PERCENT

Survey Finds Rising Class Tension

Eclipses race and immigration conflicts.

A victory for Occupy Wall Street? A Pew survey finds that the conflict between rich and poor is seen as the greatest source of tension in American society. According to the survey, two-thirds of Americans now believe there are “strong conflicts” between rich and poor in the United States, the largest share since 1992 and a whopping 50 percent increase from the 2009 survey. In 2009, immigration was seen as the greatest source of tension. A finding that might have bearing on the 2012 election: Awareness of class conflict surged 23 percent among independent voters. Awareness of class conflict also increased dramatically among white upper-middle income earners. While blacks are still more likely to see serious class conflict than whites, the percentage of whites who do rose 22 percent.