兩極分化嚴重 美國中產階級正在"縮水"
The middle class in America's cities has shrunk dramatically in the 21st century.
美國城市的中產階級陣容在本世紀大幅萎縮。A Pew Research Center analysis of Census Bureau data looked at the state of the middle class in America's metropolitan areas. Pew defined "middle-income" households as those whose income fell between two-thirds and twice the national median household income.
皮尤研究中心通過對美國人口普查局數據進行分析，察看了美國大都市區中產階級的狀態。皮尤研究中心對“中等收入”家庭的定義是，收入在全美國平均收入三分之二到兩倍之間的家庭。Between 2000 and 2014, 203 out of the 229 metropolitan areas analyzed had a decline in the percentage of their populations that fell in that middle-income range.
2000年到2014年間，在其分析的229個大都市區中，有203個大都市區的中等收入羣體所佔人口比重有所下降。
Pew observed that the decline in the middle class is associated with an overall increase in inequality in the US.
皮尤發現，中產階級的衰落與美國的不平等現象全面增長有關。
Pew also noted that the drop in the percentage of households that fall in the middle coincides with an overall decline in incomes. Pew's report pointed out that in the time period covered, real median household incomes in the US as a whole fell by 8%.
皮尤還發現，中產階級家庭比例的降低與收入的全面下滑相吻合。皮尤的報告指出，在研究覆蓋的時間段內，美國實際家庭收入中位數整體跌落8%。The decline of the middle class in America's cities is one of the biggest political and economic problems of the 21st century, and Pew's analysis shows the severity of the problem.
美國城市中產階級的下降是二十一世紀最大的政治和經濟問題之一，而皮尤的這一分析表明了問題的嚴重性。"The current and future status of the American middle class continues to be a central issue in the 2016 presidential campaign. Moreover, new economic research suggests that a struggling middle class could be holding back the potential for future economic growth," Pew wrote in its report. "The national trend is clear — the middle class is losing ground as a share of the population, and its share of aggregate U.S. household income is also declining."
皮尤研究中心在報告中寫道：“美國中產階級的當前和未來的地位仍然是2016年總統競選中的一個核心問題。此外，新的經濟研究表明，一個正在掙扎的中產階級可能會阻礙未來經濟增長的潛力。這個國家的趨勢是明顯的--中產階級正失去作爲一部分人口的份額，它的總收入也在下降。”
