Everybody has a little Robin Hood in ‘em…wake yours up!

Everybody remembers Robin Hood, right? Take from the rich. Give to the poor. Not very popular with the powers-that-be. VERY popular with the regular folk. We all know the story. Does anyone out there think we could use a modern-day Robin Hood about now? 

For many of our fellow citizens, the past five years since the near collapse of the global economy have not been kind. High unemployment rates, made even worse by the significant amount of long-term unemployed, has devastated the middle class and working poor. Income inequality has grown to heights not seen since the Great Depression. An entire decade of flat wage growth has left many families struggling to keep their heads above water.

Not coincidently there is a small segment of the population that is doing quite well, thank you very much. Our economy has returned to growth mode, albeit tepidly, and the folks at the top of the income scale are the only ones seeing the benefits. This is where Robin Hood dashes in from Sherwood Forest and saves the day. 

We The People stepped up to the plate when Wall Street avarice and arrogance drove the global economy to the brink of destruction. In the aftermath of the Great Recession, the U.S. Treasury bailed out the “too big to fail” financial institutions and saved them from the risky investments and outright fraudulent business practices that were the core causes of near-ruin.

The time has come to pay up Wall Street! The Robin Hood Tax movement is a world-wide phenomenon, seeking to address the austerity budgeting and low-tax policies enforced on everyday citizens as a result of an economic calamity whose aftershocks are still being felt. The answer? Implementation of a small tax on Wall Street transactions like the purchase of stocks, derivatives,credit-default swaps and on the types of commodity speculation that has kept the price of gasoline so high. Millions of transactions are conducted on Wall Street on a daily basis. The vast majority of them driven by the types of institutional investors who received the greatest benefit from the bailout. 

Two bills, currently stalled in committee, have been proposed to kickstart this movement. In the House, Rep. Keith Ellison has sponsored The Inclusive Prosperity Act of 2013 (H.R.1579) calling for a .5% tax on Wall Street. In the Senate, Tom Harkin has written and sponsored The Wall Street Trading and Speculators Tax Act (S.410) seeking a .03% excise tax. Language in both bills would provide protections for the types of tax-free investments, like 401k’s, that the represent a significant amount of most American’s interaction with Wall Street. Both of these important pieces of legislation could use co-sponsors and supporters to push our elected officials to do the right thing and grow our economy with policies that address the concerns of the middle class and working poor.

You might ask “what is the right thing”? For starters, how about addressing our crumbling infrastructure, an effort that could serve the dual purpose of fixing roads and bridges and getting Americans back to work? Saving Social Security and Medicare benefits. Expanding green energy initiatives. Restoring critical R&D funding. You name it and the additional funds derived from the proposed Robin Hood taxes is the answer.

Wake up your inner-Robin Hood and make your voice heard. Call your Representative. Write your Senators. Pass the word amongst your family, friends and co-workers. Take action in support of the Robin Hood Tax movement. For more information, click here. Want to take action? Click here and here.