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A woman
plays with a baby as they wait to go into a ''Back-to-School''
giveaway at the
Fred Jordan Mission in Los Angeles, California October 6, 2011.
(Credit:
Reuters/Lucy Nicholson)
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(Reuters) -
The number of children in the United States considered poor rose by 1 million
in 2010, the U.S. Census said on Thursday, with nearly one in three of the
youngest Americans now living in poverty.
"Children
who live in poverty, especially young children, are more likely than their
peers to have cognitive and behavioral difficulties, to complete fewer years of
education, and, as they grow up, to experience more years of
unemployment," the Census said.
In 2010,
when the Census survey was conducted, 32.3 percent of children across the
country were poor, compared to 30.8 percent in 2009.
That was
mainly due to a rise in the number of children living below the federal poverty
threshold, defined as an annual income of $22,314 for a family of four, to 15.7
million from 14.7 million in 2009.
The figures
reflect the overall state of the economy. The national poverty rate stands at
15.3 percent and the unemployment rate is at 9 percent some two years after the
recession that began in 2007 officially ended.
The number
of people living in poverty has reached an all-time high in the United States,
despite the country's position as one of the wealthiest in the world. Its gross
domestic product per capita of $47,184 was 3,095 percent more than India's
$1,477 in 2010.
In 24
states and Washington, D.C., more than 20 percent of those up to 17 years old
lived at or below the poverty threshold.
RACIAL GAPS
The Census
found that the percentage of white children in poverty increased in 25 states
in 2010 from the year before.
Overall,
"white and Asian children had poverty rates below the national average,
while black children had the highest poverty rate at 38.2 percent," it
said.
"The
poverty rate for Hispanic children was 32.3 percent, and children identified
with two or more races had 22.7 percent living in poverty."
Children in
some states fared worse than in others.
"About
one of every three children in poverty lived in one of the four most populous
states, each of which saw increases in the number and the percentage of
children in poverty between 2009 and 2010," the Census said.
There were
2 million children in poverty in California, followed by Texas, where 1.8
million children were considered poor. Slightly less than 1 million children
lived in poverty in Florida and New York.
The Census
found that the number and percentage of children in poverty rose in 27 states
in 2010. Utah's rate increased the most, 11.5 percent.
Among
states, Mississippi had the highest proportion of children in poverty, 32.5
percent. In Washington, D.C., and in New Mexico, child poverty rates also
neared one-third.
In 10
states child poverty rates are 25 percent or higher, including Alabama, Arkansas,
Louisiana, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.
New
Hampshire has the lowest child poverty rate, 10 percent.
(Reporting
by Lisa Lambert; Editing by Xavier Briand)
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