This is so blatantly wrong I can't even believe I'm reading it.
Yes I'm sure having to pay a portion of your profits to a random guy who showed up with two thugs threatening to burn your place down if you didn't is a great way to get to the middle class. Italians also had the amazing luxury of not knowing the language, and in my parents case, two languages in a part of the world where you are discriminated based on the language you speak.