Hmm. There may be differences in definitions here. Summer homes do not fall into my definition of middle class, and neither do food stamps. This divide you're speaking of is a difference between wealthy and poor, not of levels of the middle class.

I do think much of it is exposure. There are reasons I hang out on forums with a wide user base -- while I may not know these people in meatspace, I do know people who have spent years living in RVs, years living with only a generator for electricity -- or less!, people on fixed incomes, people living off their investments, and people who have extravagantly wonderful homes and land. ALL of them are hard workers. America lends itself to industry. I know very few slackers of any kind. (That may be a sampling issue.)

It has been my experience that everyone defaults to the assumption that others start at their level, until something proves otherwise. This has been true for people I know on all levels of income.

How to raise awareness? Talk about it. Put it out where people can see. Money is often a taboo topic. My family never talked about money outside the family. We were taught fiscal responsibility, but it was not acceptable to talk about money with other people.