Report: American Suburbs Top Cities In Poverty
By: Most people link poverty with the inner city-but that's no longer the case. A newly released study from The Brookings Institution found suburban poor outnumbered their city counterparts for the first time.
On “Street Signs” CNBC’s Erin Burnett spoke with study co-author, Alan Berube about his report-- Two Steps Back: City and Suburban Poverty Trends.
She also spoke with Greg Brown--Executive Director and President of the Center for Community Solutions in Cleveland. (Last year--the study named Cleveland as the city with the highest poverty rate.)
Berube said what's new about his study is - up to 5 or 6 years ago the majority of America's poor lived in cities and today--they're in suburbs. He said it emphasizes the fact that economies today are regional - you can not separate them by city. Places rise and fall together, not separately.
He also said most poor families work today and they're in the suburbs because that's where the jobs are but that they need support to make up the gaps between wages and prices.
Greg Brown says when you look at the Cleveland poverty rate there's been a stark increase over the past 6 years of poor people in the suburbs. He also said one of the biggest challenges this poses for the suburbs--is the need for social services.
