21
Jan 10Suburban ghettoes.
Today, the Sun reported that the “majority of the poor in the Baltimore region now live in the city’s suburbs.” This trend has existed for a while, and it fits my experience in Chicago, DC, and Baltimore–take your mass transit system of choice out towards the suburbs during rush hour, and the further you go, the higher the proportion of scuffed-up passengers gets. It also should be a reminder that a) major demographic shifts can happen pretty quickly, and b) a lot of these suburbs don’t have much of a safety net or many local jobs, having largely sprouted up as bedroom communities.
It also underscores the need for effective regional mass transit, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that.
And of course, the news doesn’t change the fact that 23% of Baltimore’s 625,000-strong population fall below the poverty line, including over 30% of minors. So Baltimore still got problems.