The Relationship Between Poverty and Crime Among Blacks in Memphis
According to the Memphis Poverty Fact sheet of 2019, the poverty rate of Memphis stood at 27.8%. Of that rate, 44.9% was child poverty, while that of people over the age of 65 was the lowest among all age groups whose data was collected at 15.8%. The data indicated an increase in poverty among non-Hispanic Blacks while decreasing for non-Hispanic Whites and Latinos. The poverty rate for non-Hispanic Blacks was 33.8%, which was an increase from 32.3% that was recorded the previous years. That of non-Hispanic White decreased to 11.8%. In the Memphis Statistical Metropolitan Area (MSA), which includes the parts of Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi, the overall poverty was 18.8%, 29.3% child poverty, and 11.4% poverty for people aged 65 years and above. Further, non-Hispanic Black poverty was 27.6%, non-Hispanic White poverty was 8.9%, and Hispanic or Latino poverty was 23.5%.
From the data, one can gather that even though there was a considerable increase in the poverty rate among non-Hispanic Blacks of the Memphis population, and an even huger disparity between the poverty rate among non-Hispanic Black people and non-Hispanic White People. Besides, the poverty rates for the metropolitan area of Memphis continued to be higher than those of Shelby County across all age groups in the population that formed part of the research. The information gathered ties to the issue of crime in Memphis directly and, most especially among Blacks. Therefore, the inference is that poverty among Blacks is the lead cause of high rates of crime in the Memphis Metropolitan area. Memphis Crime Data indicates the crime rate of Memphis as being 84 in 1000 residents. Memphis has one of the highest crime rates in America compared to all other communities. The crime rate is higher in the Memphis Metropolitan area compared to all the others, with there being a one in 12 chance of a person being a victim of either violent or property crime. The paper seeks to establish the relationship between poverty and crime among Blacks in Memphis and further ascertain the strategies that have been put in place to combat poverty and lead to the resultant outcome of a decrease in poverty levels in the state. It is evident that poverty has been racialized in Memphis.
The paper seeks to understand why there is a continued increase in poverty levels among Blacks while Whites continue to experience a decrease, yet the two groups reside in the same state. While people have argued that poverty is not a direct cause of crime, the truth is the ravaging effects of poverty heavily contribute to individuals exploring the possibility of crime to earn a living. Further, joblessness often leads to depression, especially among young people who resort to drug and substance abuse, which is a crime and increases their chances of getting involved in hardcore crime. In a state where there is grave disparity between the access to opportunities between Blacks and Whites, Blacks are highly predisposed to engage in crime to make even for what they feel they are deserving of but are constantly denied on racial grounds.