New U.S. Census State and Local Data on Poverty Underscores Need for Bold Action to Reduce Child Poverty in California
U.S. Census Bureau data released today reveal that 1.9 million California children (21.2%) lived in poverty in 2015, down slightly since 2014, when 2.05 million California children (22.7%) were poor. Children remain the poorest age group, and research confirms that poverty is especially devastating for children. Children of color continue to be disproportionately poor: 28.5% (1,328,619) of Latino children, 31.0% (150,457) of Black children, 11.4% (115,846) of Asian children and 33.2% (23,300) of American Indian/Alaska Native children were poor in 2015, compared to 10.3% (240,953) of White children. A striking number of California children live in extreme poverty, defined as less than half the poverty level, putting them at severe risk of homelessness, trauma, and hunger. In 2015, 795,846 California children (8.9%) lived in extreme poverty, surviving on less than $33 a day for a family of four. "Child poverty [...]
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