China’s Brutal Caste System

A Chinese worker walks along a street after work in Beijing on Dec. 28, 2015. Construction workers, machine operators in factories, office cleaners—the sweat of their brows has contributed to China's economic growth. But while they are free to move in search of employment, they and their children have long been denied equal access to public services such as schools, hospitals and housing under a decades-old household registration system known as "hukou." Wang Zhao/AFP via Getty Images

Commentary

In a piece for The Atlantic, David Brooks laments the decline of American society. “These days,” writes Brooks, “your education level and political values are as important in defining your class status as your income is.” The country has split into two distinct, “separate class hierarchies—one red and one blue.” The “ideological divide” is fast becoming a chasm. The United States, according to Brooks, is in trouble.