Poverty in Cleveland, Ohio

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Can Poverty Cause Crime?

• Poverty in Cleveland, Ohio
• by Gayle A. Terrell, MPH
• December 1, 2005 Fall Semester 2005
• Intro to Geographic Information Systems
• UST 642 - Dr. Sugie Lee

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Our Town - City of Cleveland, Ohio
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Were Right Here!
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Equation
This?
Can This
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If So, Why Cant
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Equation
This?
This
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Poverty and Justice
Cleveland No.1 in big-city poverty
Nearly half of children among the poor

Friday, August 27, 2004
Robert L. Smith and Dave Davis
Plain Dealer Reporters
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A Crime To Live In Poverty?

• Crime can be closely linked to the conditions for
  children in our community. There is a strong
  link between reducing risk and building
  resilience in children and decreasing crime.
  Problems arise when the larger social, political
  and economic systems within which children live
  jeopardize the familys resources and create
  stress on the family unit.

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Could Poverty Be the Blame?
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Poorest City in U.S.

• Woe is Cleveland, city named Poorest in U
• by cleveland imc newswire Sunday, Oct. 10, 2004
  at 524 AM
• As many were focused on the major RNC protests in
  NYC, the u census bureau released new
• statistics on poverty. Cleveland was on the top
  of the heap in many categories leading it to be
• named the new "Poorest Big City" in the country.
• 31.3 percent of Cleveland's households live below
  the poverty line according to the survey, and
  almost
• half of the city's children are "poor". But,
  according to a report from Cleveland-based
  research institute
• Policy Matters Ohio, the entire state is in an
  equally depressed condition.
• Mayor calls for "Poverty Summit"
• The new status was not a surprise for many who
  know the city from the bottom up, but seemed to
  be a
• wake up call to local policy makers. Cleveland
  Mayor Jane Campbell called for a "poverty summit"
  of
• government, business, and nonprofit bigwigs to
  address what the PD is calling "a quiet crisis."
• Cleveland beat out another bombed-out rustbelt
  city, Detroit and other cities like Newark, NJ
  and
• Fresno, CA for this years top (dis)honor and took
  over from perennial poverty leader Miami, FL.
  This
• may be rock bottom for a city that has been in a
  downward spiral for some time, but for
  Clevelanders
• there be nowhere else to go but up. How far the
  city bounces back will depend on how seriously
  the city's

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2000 Crime Stats

• MMurderRpRapeRbRobberyAsAssaultsBuBurgla
  ryLTLarceny/TheftMVMotor Vehicle
  TheftArArson

The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program defines
larceny-theft as the unlawful taking, carrying,
leading, or riding away of property from the
possession or constructive possession of another
attempts to do these acts are included in the
definition. This crime category includes
shoplifting, pocket-picking, purse-snatching,
thefts from motor vehicles, thefts of motor
vehicle parts and accessories, bicycle thefts,
and so forth, in which no use of force, violence,
or fraud occurs. Excluded from larceny-theft is
motor vehicle theft, which is classified in a
separate offense category also excluded are
crimes that involve embezzlement, confidence
games, forgery, and worthless checksall of which
are UCR Part II offenses.
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Poverty Profile Cleveland City vs. Cuyahoga
County
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2003 City of Cleveland ranked number 1 in poverty

• In 2003 Clevelands Poverty Rate was
• 31.3
• Nearly 1 in 3 Cleveland residents live in
• poverty
• Highest poverty rate among U.S. cities
• with 250,000 or more residents

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Cleveland County Poverty by Age

• Poverty status, as measured in this chart, is
  determined by Poverty Thresholds, which take into
  account a number of factors, including income and
  family size and structure. For example, the 2000
  Poverty Threshold for a family of four in the
  continental United States with two related
  children was 17,463. However, Poverty Thresholds
  are misleading because they do not provide an
  accurate picture of what a poor familys life is
  like.

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2003 Definition of poverty

• How the Census Bureau measures poverty
• Family income
• Number of persons in family
• Ages of family members

In 2003, a family of four with 2 adults and 2
children with an income of less than 18,660 was
considered Poor.
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Percent of People Living in Poverty for Selected
Places, 2001- 2003
Source U.S. Census Bureau, American Community
Surveys in 2001, 2002, and 2003
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Concentrated Poverty in High Poverty Tracts, 2000
Source Center on Urban Poverty and Social Change
analysis of data from Neighborhood Change
Database (NCDB)
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Percent of People Living in Poverty for Selected
Counties, 2003
Source U.S. Census Bureau, 2003 American
Community Survey
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Suburban Poverty Rates in Cuyahoga County, 2000
Source Center on Urban Poverty and Social Change
analysis of Census 2000 SF3 data
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In Conclusion

• Crime- Many people look to crime to get the
  things that they cannot afford. There are many
  levels of crime stemming from poverty. Some
  people steal loaves of bread, and some steal cars
  or jewelry to hoc.
• Hunger- this is a fairly obvious result of
  poverty.
• Forced to drop out of school- Many times, when a
  family is forced to live on the streets or are in
  need of money to keep their home, the children
  are forced to quit school and look for a job.
• And, when you make your way out of poverty, there
  is a whole new reentrance back into society.

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Any Question
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Thank You!