The Equity Factor

The Economic Inequality Index, 1963-2013

On the anniversary of MLK’s historic speech, here are the staggering numbers of America’s continuing racial economic inequality.

From the March on Washington in 1963. © Estate of Leonard Freed – Magnum Photos (Brigitte Freed)

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President Obama and a host of other luminaries are gathered at the Lincoln Memorial today to honor the 50-year anniversary of the March on Washington and Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. A lot can change in half a century, and a lot has changed for American civil rights.

But there’s no denying that a stark gap still exists in terms of race and economic opportunity in the U.S. Next City culled numbers and links from across the web, compiling stats from graduation rates to the income disparity to show what has changed — for better or worse — since the 1960s.

Unemployment

  • Black unemployment rate in 1963: 10.9 percent
  • White unemployment rate in 1963: 5 percent
  • Black unemployment rate as of July 2013: 12.6 percent
  • White unemployment rate as of July 2013: 6.6 percent

Incomes

  • Difference in black and white incomes in the 1967: $19,000
  • Difference in black and white incomes in 2011: $27,000
  • Difference between white and Hispanic incomes in 1970: $15,500
  • Difference between white and Hispanic incomes in 2011: $27,000

Educational Attainment

  • Share of white adults with at least a high school education in 1964: 51 percent
  • Share of black adults with at least a high school education in 1964: 27 percent
  • Share of white adults with at least a high school education in 2012: 92 percent
  • Share of black adults with at least a high school education in 2012: 86 percent

Homeownership

  • White homeownership rate in 1976: 69 percent
  • Black homeownership rate in 1976: 44 percent
  • White homeownership rate in 2012: 73 percent
  • Black homeownership rate in 2012: 44 percent

And check out this Pew Research Center graphic about how people perceive change.

Progress Has Been Made, But Still a Long Way to Go

Sources: New Yorker, Reuters, Pew Research Center, Economic Policy Institute.

The Equity Factor is made possible with the support of the Surdna Foundation.

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Bill Bradley is a writer and reporter living in Brooklyn. His work has appeared in Deadspin, GQ, and Vanity Fair, among others.

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Tags: economic developmentwashington dcequity factorrace

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