Growing number of children living in poverty in U.S.

A
new Kids Count data snapshot from the Annie E. Casey Foundation indicates that
nearly 8 million, or 11 percent, of the nation’s children live in high-poverty
areas. High-poverty areas are communities in which at least 30 percent of
residents of live below the federal poverty threshold or 22,314 per year for a
family of four.

The
chance that a child will live in an area of concentrated poverty has surged in
the last decade. Since 2000, there has been a 25 percent increase in the number
of children living in high-poverty communities. These disadvantaged communities
are associated with undesirable outcomes for children; research shows that
growing up in a high-poverty neighborhood can affect a child’s ability to
succeed in school and can undermine a child’s chances of adult economic
security.

The
report highlights the children most likely to live in areas of concentrated
poverty. Overall, children living in rural areas and large cities are more
likely than those in the suburbs to live in high-poverty neighborhoods. States
with the highest rates of children are Mississippi (23 percent), New Mexico (20
percent) and Louisiana (18 percent). Among the country’s largest cities,
Detroit (67 percent) Cleveland (43 percent) and Miami (49 percent) have the
highest rates of kids living in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Additionally,
African American, American Indian and Latino children are six to nine times
more likely to live in areas of concentrated poverty than their white peers.

The
U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey supplied the data, which can be
found at the Kids Count Data Center.
The Data Center allows users to create rankings, maps and graphs.