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Comment by pclmulqdq

3 hours ago

Many working-class families in NYC have several "welfare kings/queens" who have little or no income, claiming huge benefits packages from the city, and a few people with $150-300k/year union jobs who buy the luxury goods for the whole clan. The necessities for the high-earners are generally also covered by those benefits packages in the form of shared meals and housing. As a result, everyone in the group lives a pretty middle-class life despite most of the clan being poor on paper. As far as I can tell, this is how a lot of the New York working class survives.

You have no idea what you're talking about

  • I dated someone in one of these families for a very long time, so I'm pretty sure I do know how that family system and the surrounding community operates. This sort of "family commune" living arrangement is very common in lower-income communities with family-oriented cultures (eg working-class hispanic, italian, african american communities), and the tax code amplifies its effectiveness.