Rural and urban poverty has been increasing at a rapid rate over the last 50 years. It stemmed from many things but some of these the reasons were:
-lack of jobs, thus the move to more urban areas
-the elimination of family farms
-the Walmart effect and the impact on main street
-the ease of travel, the internet and the ability for people to see the world more freely
Point is that in many cases, those that could relocate to better their lives did so. Look no further than a place like Gary or East St. Louis. Both were urban but had populations of over 100k in the 1960 census and then major shifts in jobs, etc. started. White flight occurred and the rest is history. You can also look at Detroit, Philly, etc.
Then you can look at rust belt towns around the country there are 100's of examples of towns 30k and above that had some form of manufacturing and lost many jobs and it killed the town. Clinton and Burlington could be on this list.
The south is having a great migration of retirees and people seeking more sun and warmth. But with that comes many other growing pain issues and they are not immune to many of the same ills that have hit the rust belt/Midwest for years. The reduction of the size of the middle class and the extremes of the haves and have nots will continue to create areas of affluence and immense poverty.
-lack of jobs, thus the move to more urban areas
-the elimination of family farms
-the Walmart effect and the impact on main street
-the ease of travel, the internet and the ability for people to see the world more freely
Point is that in many cases, those that could relocate to better their lives did so. Look no further than a place like Gary or East St. Louis. Both were urban but had populations of over 100k in the 1960 census and then major shifts in jobs, etc. started. White flight occurred and the rest is history. You can also look at Detroit, Philly, etc.
Then you can look at rust belt towns around the country there are 100's of examples of towns 30k and above that had some form of manufacturing and lost many jobs and it killed the town. Clinton and Burlington could be on this list.
The south is having a great migration of retirees and people seeking more sun and warmth. But with that comes many other growing pain issues and they are not immune to many of the same ills that have hit the rust belt/Midwest for years. The reduction of the size of the middle class and the extremes of the haves and have nots will continue to create areas of affluence and immense poverty.