Many Oklahomans Remain Impoverished, Hungry

Oklahoma’s poverty rate remains above the national average even though it decreased in 2007, according to The Oklahoma Policy Institute.

The state’s current poverty rate is 15.9 percent, which is 2.6 percent above the national average, according to OK Policy which cited U.S. Census figures in a recent statement about the issue. The 2007 rate decreased by 1.1 percent over 2006, but it still remains greater than the 13.8 percent rate in 2000.

In essence, many Oklahomans have been left behind over the last seven years, and the state has retained its “poor state” stigma.

"These numbers remind us that while the rising tide of energy prices has been lifting the Oklahoma economy, many families have not managed to make it onto the boat of prosperity,” said Matt Guillory, executive director of OK Policy. “Unfortunately, it is these low-income families that are facing the hardest times managing recent steep rises in the price of food, gas and utilities.”

The poverty level was defined at $20,650 for a family of four in 2007, according to the organization.

The poverty rate for children in Oklahoma was at a staggering 22.1 percent.

“We need to remember that poverty can do terrible things to kids,” said Anne Roberts, executive director of the Oklahoma Institute of Child Advocacy. “It can leave them hungry, poorly clothed and susceptible to a host of other stressors, such as poor health and safety. All the other risk factors that make children vulnerable are exacerbated by poverty.” Robert’s comments were included in the OK Policy press statement about the new census figures.

Child poverty can lead to family cycles of poverty that are difficult to change, and this hurts the state economically. A recent report showed Oklahoma has a high rate of hunger as well.

The high rates of poverty in Oklahoma and this country are tragic and shameful. As the mega-wealthy have seen their incomes rise astronomically during the long, gruesome years of the George Bush presidency, low-income and middle-class people have been left behind.

There are many ways to attack poverty here in Oklahoma and elsewhere, but nothing much can be done until the country once again elects a Democratic president.