B2620thand21st

__ #26: Class Barriers/Tensions Reduce __ War promoted greater social equality, blurring class distinctions and lessening the gap between rich and poor. In Great Britain, the bottom third of the population generally lived better than they had ever had, for the poorest gained most from the severe shortage of labor. After the Second World War, European society became more mobile and democratic. Again, old class barriers relaxed and class distinctions became fuzzier. The structure of the lower class also became more flexible and open as one of the most traditional and least mobile groups in European society drastically declined. European governments were reducing class tensions with a series of social security reforms such as increased unemployment benefits and more extensive old-age pensions. McKay, John P. __History of Western society__. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003.