Poverty in Dallas: A Story of DisparityDr. Timothy M. Bray

Will Rogers

“It’s not what we don’t know that hurts us, it’s what we know that just 

ain’t so!”

Understanding How We Define Poverty

Where Did We Get the US Definition?

How Much Is Enough?

How Much is Too Little?

"Mollie Orshansky 1967" by UnknownSocial Security Administration History Archives.Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

Defining Poverty in the United States – 2014

Size of family unitRelated children under 18 years

None One Two Three Four Five Six SevenEight or more

One person (unrelated individualUnder 65 years 12,31665 years and over 11,354Two peopleHouseholder under 65 years 15,853 16,317

Householder 65 years and over 14,309 16,256Three people 18,518 19,055 19,073Four people 24,418 24,817 24,008 24,091Five people 29,447 29,875 28,960 28,252 27,820Six people 33,869 34,004 33,303 32,631 31,633 31,041Seven people 38,971 39,214 38,375 37,791 36,701 35,431 34,036Eight people 43,586 43,970 43,179 42,485 41,501 40,252 38,953 38,622Nine people or more 52,430 52,685 51,984 51,396 50,430 49,101 47,899 47,601 45,768

Source: US Bureau of the Census, 2014 Poverty Threshold Table

Minimum Wage Is Often Below Poverty Wage

Size of family unitRelated children under 18 years

None One Two Three Four Five Six SevenEight or more

One person (unrelated individual)Under 65 years 122%65 years and overTwo peopleHouseholder under 65 years 190% 92%Householder 65 years and overThree people 244% 158% 79%Four people 247% 182% 126% 63%Five people 256% 202% 156% 107% 54%Six people 267% 222% 181% 139% 95% 49%Seven people 271% 231% 196% 160% 123% 85% 44%Eight people 277% 240% 210% 177% 145% 112% 77% 39%Nine people or more 259% 229% 203% 176% 150% 123% 94% 63% 33%

What About a Living Wage?

Costs for a Family of Three in North Texas

Food$6,704

Childcare$7,977

Medical$6,534

Housing$10,956

Transportation$9,859

Other$4,284

Required Income$46,315

Taxes$5,335

Income Before Taxes$51,650

Required Hourly Wage$24.83

Typical Annual Wages

Education, Training, and Library ‐ $47,200

Healthcare Support ‐ $24,600

Protective Service ‐ $37,000

Food Prep, Serving , & Related ‐ $18,620

Office & Administrative Support ‐ $30,920

Production ‐ $30,460

Community & Social Service ‐ $42,580

Poverty in Dallas

Among Highest in 

Poverty Rates

• In 2014, 25% of Dallas residents lived below the poverty line.

• 46% lived below 185% of the poverty line.

Poverty Outpaced Population 

Growth

• Population grew by 8% from 2000‐2014.

• Persons living in poverty grew by 49% from 2000‐2014.

Who is Poor in the City of Dallas?

• 24.5% of Dallas Residents Live Below 100% of the Poverty Threshold (±1.2%)

At the Margin

• Non‐Hispanic White 10.1%(±1.1%)• African American 32.4%(±2.5%)• Asian 27.7%(±6.1%)• Hispanic of Any Race 29.6%(±2.0%)

By Race and Ethnicity

• Under 18 37.8%(±2.5%)• 18 to 64 20.6%(±1.0%)• 65 and Up 13.9%(±1.7%)

By Age

Source: American Community Survey 2014 1‐Year Estimates

Who is Near Poor in the City of Dallas?

• 42.2% of Dallas Residents Live Below 185% of the Poverty Threshold (±1.1%)

At the Margin

• Non‐Hispanic White 18.8%(±1.2%)• Non‐Hispanic African American 52.3%(±7.4%)• Non‐Hispanic Asian 27.5%(±5.1%)• Hispanic of Any Race 59.5%(±1.9%)

By Race and Ethnicity

• Under 18 59.2%(±1.8%)• 18 to 64 37.0%(±1.3%)• 65 and Up 30.5%(±2.0%)

By Age

Source: Institute Analysis of American Community Survey Public Use Micro Sample (PUMS) 2014 1‐Year Estimates

Poverty in Dallas: It’s Bad, But Not for Everybody

Concentrated Poverty

019

7 11

90

29 54

85

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Non‐HispanicWhite

Non‐HispanicBlack

No PredominantGroup

Hispanic

Poverty Distribution of Tracts by Predominant Racial / Ethnic 

Category

Concentrated Poverty Not Concentrated Poverty

Non Hispanic White 0%

Non‐Hispanic Black 51%

Hispanic30%

No Pred. Group 19%

NUMBER OF TRACTS IN CONCENTRATED POVERTY

Source: American Community Survey1‐Year Estimates, 2014

 $‐

 $50

 $100

 $150

 $200

 $250

 $300

 $350

 $400

 $450

 $500

Bottom 1% Bottom 10% Bottom 25% Median Top 25% Top 10% Top 1%

Thou

sand

s

Personal Income of Employed Adults, Age 25‐64, City of Dallas, 2014By Race / Ethnicity and Percentile

Non‐Hispanic White Non‐Hispanic Black Non‐Hispanic Other Hispanic

Source: American Community Survey1‐Year Public Use Microsample Data, 2014

37.37%

28.39%

49.76%

31.32%

42.91%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Margin Non‐Hispanic White Non‐Hispanic Black Non‐Hispanic Other Hispanic

Percent of Households Housing Distressed

Margin Non‐Hispanic White Non‐Hispanic Black Non‐Hispanic Other Hispanic

Source: American Community Survey1‐Year Public Use Microsample Data, 2014

Geographic Isolation - 2014

The Sheer Scale is Alarming

Number of Persons Living in Poverty, 2014 310,167Number of Persons Living Near Poverty, 2014 587,130Number of Households Housing Distressed, 2014 237,598Number of Persons Living in Housing Distressed Households, 2014

595,167

Source: American Community Survey1‐Year Estimates and Public Use Microsample Data, 2014

Why Does It Matter and What Can We Do About It

A Litany

Father Robert W. Castle, an Episcopal priest, was rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Jersey City, New Jersey, from 1960 to 1968, before resigning. In 1968 he wrote Prayers for the Burned‐Out City.

The book jacket states “… the city brings into a single focus all of our problems of environmental pollution, inefficient transportation and unwieldy government. Even worse, it is the city which has spawned the ghetto, and the ghetto in turn has begotten economic exploitation, unemployability, ersatz education and chronic despair.

These are the combustible materials heaped high in the ghettoes of over forty cities throughout the country, and their burned‐out sectors are symbolic of the ravages wrought upon the minds and hearts of those condemned to live in the wasteland of the inner‐city.”

Robert W. Castle Jr. in 1964Photo: Maurice C. Carroll/The New York Times

A Different World…

Why Should We Care?

Source: US Department of Health and Human Services Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood

Poverty Impacts Educational Outcomes

Economic Distress Impacts Civic Participation

46% of Non‐voters have family 

incomes less than $30,000 per year.

Only 19% of likely voters are from low‐income families.

Poverty Impacts Brain Development

Poverty: Damaged Child

Dorothea Lange

Oklahoma City, OK, USA

1936 (Colorized by Kelly Short)

Annual Message to Congress

December 1, 1862

“It is not ‘can any of us imagine better?’ but, ‘can we all do better?’ The dogmas of the quiet past, are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise 

with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we 

shall save our country.”

‐Abraham Lincoln

“Lincoln the Letter Writer”‐Lloyd Ostendorf, 1987

For More Information

Dr. Timothy M. Bray

Institute for Urban Policy ResearchThe University of Texas at Dallas

800 West Campbell Road, WT20Richardson, Texas 75080

V: 972‐883‐5430F: 972‐883‐5431

timothy.bray@utdallas.eduhttp://iupr.utdallas.edu

www.slideshare.net/TimothyBray

@timothy_bray