Study: Poorest areas missed out on recovery
By Nelson D. Schwartz, New York Times
The gap between the richest and poorest American communities has widened since the Great Recession ended, and distressed areas are faring worse just as the recovery is gaining traction across much of the country.
These findings, outlined in a study released Thursday by the Economic Innovation Group, a new nonprofit research and advocacy organization, may help explain why the country’s economic and political situation has become so polarized in recent years. The results, broken down into areas as small as individual ZIP codes, provide one of the most detailed looks at the nation’s growing inequality.
From 2010 to 2013, for example, employment in the most prosperous neighborhoods in the United States jumped by more than a fifth, according to the group’s analysis of Census Bureau data. But in bottom-ranked neighborhoods, the number of jobs fell sharply: One in 10 businesses closed down.
Wow what a shocking finding that education and motivation will get you farther than waiting on a government handout or program. The poorest areas are getting worse because of free handouts and generations that have been told it is okay not to work or go to school. Now that is coming back to haunt us all. Amazing that areas that value hard work, entrepreneuralship and education are thenjoying areas that are seeing a recovery. Something needs to be done by the current administration to stop people from doing better.