Park Avenue: Money, Power & The American Dream

[ DRAMATIC MUSICAL INTRODUCTION

PLAYS ]

>> Narrator: THIS STRETCH

OF PARK AVENUE ON THE

UPPER EAST SIDE OF MANHATTAN

IS THE WEALTHIEST NEIGHBORHOOD

IN NEW YORK CITY.

THIS IS WHERE THE PEOPLE AT

THE TOP OF THE LADDER LIVE...

THE UPPER CRUST...

THE ULTRA RICH.

BUT THIS STREET IS ABOUT A LOT

MORE THAN MONEY.

IT'S ABOUT POLITICAL POWER.

THE RICH HERE HAVEN'T JUST USED

THEIR MONEY TO BUY FANCY CARS,

PRIVATE JETS, AND MANSIONS.

THEY'VE ALSO USED IT TO RIG

THE GAME IN THEIR FAVOR.

OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS, THEY'VE

ENJOYED UNPRECEDENTED PROSPERITY

FROM A SYSTEM THAT THEY

INCREASINGLY CONTROL.

BUT IF YOU HEAD NORTH FOR ABOUT

10 MINUTES, THIS PARK AVENUE

COMES TO AN END AT

THE HARLEM RIVER.

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WATER,

THERE IS ANOTHER PARK AVENUE.

THIS IS THE SOUTH BRONX,

HOME TO AMERICA'S POOREST

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT.

THERE ARE 700,000 PEOPLE IN THIS

DISTRICT.

ALMOST 40% OF THEM LIVE IN

POVERTY, MAKING LESS THAN $40

A DAY.

FROM HERE, THE LAST 30 YEARS

HAVE LOOKED VERY DIFFERENT THAN

THE VIEW FROM MANHATTAN'S

PARK AVENUE.

PEOPLE HERE HAVE SEEN THEIR

WAGES FALL AND THE COST OF

ALMOST EVERYTHING ELSE GO

THROUGH THE ROOF.

THEY'VE LOST THEIR JOBS IN

A RECESSION CAUSED BY BANKERS

ACROSS THE RIVER.

THEY'VE WATCHED THEIR CHILDREN

STRUGGLE AND FAIL IN SCHOOLS,

AND THEY'VE ENDED UP EVEN WORSE

OFF THAN THEY WERE A GENERATION

AGO.

BUT AMERICA IS STILL A LAND

OF OPPORTUNITY, ISN'T IT?

A PLACE WHERE ANYONE CAN MAKE

IT TO THE TOP IF THEY'RE WILLING

TO WORK HARD AND SET THEIR

SIGHTS HIGH.

THAT'S WHAT MAKES THIS COUNTRY

GREAT.

ISN'T THAT WHAT WE TELL

OURSELVES?

BUT IN TODAY'S AMERICA, WHAT ARE

THE CHANCES THAT SOMEONE WHO

STARTS THEIR LIFE ON THIS

PARK AVENUE WILL END UP LIVING

ON THIS PARK AVENUE?

>> LET'S IMAGINE THAT YOU'RE

INVITED TO A GAME OF MONOPOLY,

AND YOU ARRIVE AT THIS GAME TO

FIND OUT THAT ALL OF THE

PROPERTY'S BEEN DIVIDED UP,

ALL OF THE MONEY'S ALREADY BEEN

HANDED OUT, BUT YOU'RE TOLD,

"HEY, GO AHEAD AND SIT DOWN,

PLAY THE GAME.

WE'RE GONNA GIVE YOU A CHANCE

TO PLAY JUST LIKE EVERYONE

ELSE"?

THERE ARE SOME IN SOCIETY THAT

HAVE A LOT OF ACCESS, A LOT

OF SOCIAL MOBILITY, A LOT OF

RESOURCES TO DO THE THINGS THAT

THEY WANT AS OPPOSED TO OTHER

PEOPLE WHO ARE MORE

DISADVANTAGED, MORE

UNDERPRIVILEGED, DON'T HAVE

THE SAME LEVELS OF RESOURCES.

>> Narrator: PAUL PIFF IS

A SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGIST AT

THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA,

BERKELEY, WHO STUDIES THE

PSYCHOLOGY OF WEALTH

AND THE CONSEQUENCES OF

INEQUALITY IN OUR SOCIETY.

I READ ABOUT AN EXPERIMENT HE

CONDUCTED, AND IT CAUGHT MY

INTEREST.

>> * COME ON *

* LET'S PLAY MONOPOLY *

* CASH FUN AND RITZY PROPERTY *

>> OH, YEAH, YEAH.

>> Narrator: MONOPOLY FIRST

BECAME A HIT DURING

THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

IT'S A GAME OF RUTHLESS,

DOG-EAT-DOG CAPITALISM.

>> * PASSING GO *

>> Narrator: TRUE TO THE

AMERICAN DREAM, EVERYONE HAS AN

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY, STARTING WITH

THE SAME AMOUNT OF MONEY AND

THE SAME CHANCE TO SUCCEED.

WINNING IS A MIX OF LUCK AND

SKILL.

FOR HIS EXPERIMENT, PIFF RIGGED

THE GAME BY GIVING ONE PLAYER

A HUGE ADVANTAGE.

>> SO THERE ARE TWO PLAYERS.

THEY DON'T KNOW EACH OTHER.

YOU FLIP A COIN TO DETERMINE

YOUR POSITION.

SO IT'S RANDOM, ALMOST LIKE YOUR

EMERGENCE INTO THE WORLD IS

RANDOM -- WHETHER YOU LAND IN

THIS FAMILY OR THIS OTHER

FAMILY.

IF YOU WERE THE RICH PERSON,

YOU GOT A LOT MORE MONEY.

YOU GOT TWO TIMES AS MUCH MONEY.

WHEN YOU PASS GO, YOU COLLECT

$200.

YOU GET TO ROLL BOTH DICE,

SO YOU'RE ALLOWED TO MOVE AROUND

THE BOARD QUICKER.

>>

>> NOW, IF YOU'RE ON THE LOW

END, WE REALLY HIT YOU HARD.

YOU GOT HALF THE MONEY.

WHEN YOU PASSED GO, YOU

COLLECTED HALF THE SALARY.

YOU ONLY GOT TO ROLL ONE DIE,

SO YOU'RE MOVING AROUND THE

BOARD VERY, VERY SLOWLY AS

THE OTHER PERSON'S JUST WHIZZING

AROUND YOU, COLLECTING $200

EVERY COUPLE OF TURNS.

>> Narrator: EVEN IN A GAME

THAT'S OPENLY RIGGED, THE RICH

PLAYERS INEVITABLY EXHIBIT A

SENSE OF ENTITLEMENT.

THEY GOBBLE UP MORE OF THE

CAREFULLY PLACED PRETZELS.

THEY COME TO BELIEVE THAT THEY

DESERVE TO WIN.

>>

>> Narrator: AND THEY SHOW NO

CONCERN FOR THE MISFORTUNE OF

THE POOR PLAYERS EVEN THOUGH

THE POOR PLAYERS DON'T STAND

THE SLIGHTEST CHANCE OF WINNING.

>> THE IDEA OF THE

AMERICAN DREAM IS THAT

EVERYONE'S GOT AN EQUAL

OPPORTUNITY.

YOU JUST GOT TO DECIDE TO PLAY.

BUT, IN FACT, THERE ARE LARGE

GROUPS OF PEOPLE THAT EXPERIENCE

THE GAME AS UNFAIR.

THE OPPORTUNITY'S NOT THERE.

ALL THE RULES HAVE BEEN DECIDED.

THE PROPERTY'S ALREADY BEEN

BOUGHT UP AND THE MONEY'S

ALREADY IN THE HANDS OF

THE OTHER PLAYERS.

>> GET A REBOUND.

GO! GO!

>> FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING.

>> THAT'S MY GOAL.

>> I'M MICHAEL JORDAN.

>> I'M KOBE.

>> I-I-I'M RAY ALLEN!

>> ALMOST ALL FAMILIES START OUT

WITH WANTING THE SAME THINGS

FOR THEIR CHILDREN.

THEY WANT THEM TO BE SAFE,

THEY WANT THEM TO BE HAPPY,

AND THEY WANT THEM TO BE

SUCCESSFUL AND HEALTHY.

BUT EVEN BEFORE BIRTH, SO MANY

KIDS START THAT RACE BEHIND.

THEY COME INTO A NEIGHBORHOOD

THAT'S UNSAFE.

MAYBE THEY'RE IN AN

OVERCROWDED APARTMENT.

THEY DON'T HAVE HEALTHY

NUTRITION.

THEY MIGHT HAVE MEDICAL ISSUES

THAT AREN'T BEING ADDRESSED.