Emory University Professor Michael Leo Owens On U.S. Poverty Rate
America’s overall poverty rate is essentially unchanged than from two years ago.
That’s according to a new report from the United States Census Bureau.
However, the southern region of the country experienced a decline.
According to the Census Bureau the official poverty rate for 2011 was 15% or nearly 43 million people.
It’s the first time in 3 years the poverty rate didn’t increase.
Ever since the housing bust and economic crashes, the face of poverty has changed.
Since 2008 more middle class households have fallen into poverty.
It reminds Michael Leo Owens of decades past.
“Poverty is deep and it’s entrenched and like the 80’s it seems to be concentrating all over again.”
Owens is a professor of Political Science at Emory University.
He says despite the slight decrease it’s the same demographic that are still poor primarily, blacks and women.
“We’ve got the rationalization of poverty especially for African-Americans. The report tells us that 28% of blacks are in poverty and in fact that seems to be increasing from previous years. We know too that we have the feminization of poverty that’s continuing to occur and has always been the case. For women it’s 11% of women who are in poverty as compared to men.”
Owens credits the government and non-profit assistance for helping the poor.
Imagine if there were no safeguards in place say Owens.
“At least some of things we seem to be getting right is that we still have remnants of a safety net. I think we also have to acknowledge beyond government assistance but the important role that the non-profit sector continues to play. In the absence of the good deeds of folks in the non-profit sector the poverty rate would be far higher than what it is right now.”
The south showed a slight decrease in poverty.
It fell from 16.8% to 16.0%.
Also the number in poverty declined from 19.1 million people to 18.4 million.
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