Study on poverty for African Americans in Omaha

A new study says that Omaha, Nebraska has one of the highest rates of poverty amongst African American. To make matters worse, those in poverty find it impossible to escape.

From Action 3 News this Associated Press article gives us the details.

The study entitled "Celebrating the Past, Charting the Future: Omaha's African American Community" by done by the Pew Partnership for Civic Change. According to the report, while Omaha rates high on factors that determine quality of life, 30% of African American families live in poverty, compared to 10% of white families. 40% of black children live in poverty, which the study's author, Suzanne Morse, writes, "Poverty among African American children in Omaha was evident in school performance from the early grades to disproportionate high school dropout rates. Broadly put, African American children are too often behind before they start school and never catch up. "

According to the report, a myriad of significant factors hamper Omaha's black population:

* Median income of blacks in Omaha is 14 percent less than blacks nationally.
* Only 4 percent of Omaha businesses are African American owned.
* Two-thirds of African Americans in Omaha lack potential income to support their families at the basic level.
* Median household income for Omaha's African American families is $31,969, versus $50,673 for white families.
* African American unemployment in Omaha is 10.5%, compared to 3.1% for white families.