Created Equal: What rural areas and urban cities have in common

We know a lot about poverty, but there isn’t much known about the origins of extreme, intergenerational poverty that defines many regions of our nation.

We assume that rural, urban and suburban areas have very different problems, but a recent book co-authored by University of Michigan professor Luke Shaefer examines — up close — some of the poorest parts of America, and what they have in common.

Shaefer joined Stephen Henderson on Created Equal on Monday to discuss his book, “The Injustice of Place: Uncovering the Legacy of Poverty in America,” and how social welfare policies and programs may provide some relief for America’s most poverty-stricken communities.

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Guest:

Luke Schafer is a professor and the director of the Poverty Solutions initiative at the University of Michigan. He says he and the researchers were looking at the wrong regions when investigating poverty in this country.

“We were pretty shocked as folks who have spent most of our lives urban place in the north to find that so many of the most disadvantages places in the United States were rural communities in the south.” 

Listen to Created Equal with host Stephen Henderson weekdays from 9-10 a.m. ET on 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand.