Census: Number of Americans in Poverty Highest Since 1959
WASHINGTON DC. Despite claims that the U.S. has been in economic recovery for the last some 7 years, the U.S. government’s own data seems to tell a different story.
The U.S. Census Bureau released 2014 poverty statistics in the U.S. showing that the number of Americans living in poverty is the highest since 1959 (chart above). Though as a percentage of population, the U.S. poverty rate is 14.8%. In fact, under the Obama Administration, U.S. poverty is worse than it was under the “Great Recession” under President Bush (chart).
Afro-Americans (26.2%) and Hispanics (23.6%) have suffered the highest poverty rates during the Obama Administration.
In 2014, the official poverty rate was 14.8 percent. There were 46.7 million people in poverty. Neither the poverty rate nor the number of people in poverty were statistically different from the 2013 estimates.
For the fourth consecutive year, the number of people in poverty at the national level was not statistically different from the previous year’s estimates.
The 2014 poverty rate was 2.3 percentage points higher than in 2007, the year before the most recent recession.
The 2014 poverty rates for most demographic groups examined were not statistically different from the 2013 rates. Poverty rates went up between 2013 and 2014 for only two groups: people with a bachelor’s degree or more, and married-couple families.
– U.S. Poverty in General
– U.S. Poverty Rates by Nativity
– Single Families Poverty Rates
– U.S. Household Income