Welcome to Claire Rich's column, “Eat the Rich.” I am a freshman planning to major in Law, History, and Sociology and minor in Psychology. In this column, I will explore a range of social justice issues including race, class, gender, and sexuality and how they impact my “Vandy experience.” As a freshman, I am constantly living, learning, and growing on this campus, and this column will feature new experiences.
Before I go any further, I want to address the meaning of the title of this column. “Eat the rich” is often attributed to Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a famous political philosopher and leader of the French Revolution. The original quote reads: “When the people have nothing to eat, they will eat the rich.” By “the rich” Rousseau meant anyone in power. At the time, this meant Louis XVI and the rest of the aristocracy. While the monarchs lived their lives in pomp, the common people struggled to find moldy bread to feed their families. 98% of the population of France belonged to the lowest class, the Third Estate. Although the Third Estate was huge in size, its members had little to no representation in the government. Eventually, after years of starvation, malnutrition, and taxation without representation, the Third Estate revolted in 1789.
The phrase has been revived in the 21st century, when income inequality in the United States has increased dramatically. According to the Pew Research Center, “the wealth gap between the richest and poorest American families more than doubled between 1989 and 2016.” Jeff Bezos alone has gained $23 billion in wealth since the COVID-19 crisis began. Meanwhile, more than 185,000 people have died, 40 million have lost their jobs, and people below the poverty line have suffered rising mortality and unemployment rates. The phrase “eat the rich” has re-emerged among progressives as a reaction to these ongoing trends.
The hashtag #eattherich has become increasingly popular on social media sites such as TikTok and Twitter. On TikTok, the video has 185.3 million views as of September 14th. These class warfare sentiments have also been carried into the streets through political protests. After the death of George Floyd, protesters in Beverly Hills walked the streets chanting “Eat the Rich.” The use of the phrase in Black Lives Matter protests shows its intersectionality. After all, “Eat the Rich” isn't just about class warfare; it's about problematic, yet persistent, power structures that plague the United States.
While the injustices in our country may not have anything to do with moldy bread, the rhetoric of the French Revolution continues to this day. When I was thinking of a title for this column, I searched for a phrase that would address the great power inequalities I had observed during my time in the United States. For me, “eat the rich” does just that. While the phrase is often associated with class warfare, I associate it with the empowerment of the underprivileged. The phrase represents standing up to those in power and holding them accountable on behalf of the underprivileged. As seen in the Beverly Hills protests, “eat the rich” empowers the underprivileged to fight oppression, whether it be classism, racism, sexism, or other injustices. To me, this is what social justice is all about.
