Soundtrack to spotlight: the Maverick Machine Documentary
“The Broken Ladder: How Inequality affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die,” by Keith Payne is the most recent installment in the “Common Read” series, which marks 15 years since its inception.
Keith Payne is a professor of psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a leader in the psychology of inequality and discrimination. Payne’s research has been featured in The Atlantic, The New York Times, and on NPR. He has also written for Scientific American and Psychology Today.
In his book, which was published in 2018, Payne delves into the often-overlooked intersection of economic inequality and the human condition. Economic inequality, which is currently at record levels, affects our psychology: how we think and respond to stress, the well-being of our immune system, and even concepts such as justice and fairness. Payne blames this inequality on a variety of factors, including a lack of good-paying jobs, lack of access to quality healthcare and education. He also gives possible solutions to these issues, such as raising the minimum wage, closing tax loopholes for the rich, and creating a universal healthcare system.
Payne’s work was even read and reviewed by former President Barack Obama, who called the book “a persuasive and highly readable account of how rising inequality, and not just absolute poverty, is undermining our politics, social cohesion, long term prosperity, and general well-being.”
The Common Read series is hosted by the Honors Program, Learning Communities, Department of Psychology, and Library Services. According to Library Services, the goal of Common Read is “to build community through conversation and shared experiences,” and that, “books selected for the Common Read address themes related to service, citizenship, cultural diversity, life-transitions and coming of age.”
There was a host of events throughout late September and into October that covered many points of the book, featuring unique perspectives of alumni, expert faculty, and even Keith Payne himself.
On Sept. 3 there was a “Faculty Perspectives on Health Inequalities.” In this event, experts from university shared with attendees their expertise on health disparities.
A month later on Oct. 3 there was an event focused on the perspectives of alumni about finances after graduation. The panel of former students gave current students a beneficial perspective of how money plays out in that post-university, especially in a time of rising tuition cost and student loan debt.
Students can mark the calendars for the upcoming events, as the campus community will have the opportunity to hear from Payne himself about his book.
On Oct. 16 Payne will host an author question and answer session in Memorial Library Southwest Corner from 9-9:50 A.M. Later from 3 to 4:00 pm, Payne will give an author lecture in Ostrander Auditorium.
Write to ben.livingston@mnsu.edu