1. Poverty in the Rural West at the Beginning of the 21 st Century: Similar to or Different from the Rest of the Nation? Western Rural Development Center Poverty Research in the Rural West Logan, Utah April 6-8, 2005 Annabel Kirschner, Professor Department of Community and Rural Sociology Washington State University kirschner@wsu.edu http://www.crs.wsu.edu/outreach

2. 2 Differences Between West Rural Areas and Others West rural areas extremely diverse economically. In past have embodied all rural extractive industries: Agriculture, both dryland and irrigated: production of many different fruits and vegetables. Ranching Mining Timber Fishing Some Western states incorporate all of this diversity in their rural economies. Western counties are geographically large―often have diverse economies as well. Traditional economies being overlain by exurbanization and amenity/retirement growth―more prevalent in West.

3. 3 Rural Counties in West, Racially/Ethnically Diverse Historically Native Americans pushed West on to Reservations Large Mexican population absorbed when U.S. took land from Mexico Today Immigration streams causing rapid change in selected nonmetro counties. Immigrants drawn to/recruited by agricultural and other industries as low wage labor for: – Harvesting crops – Working in fruit, vegetable, poultry processing plants – Meat packing plants – Forest industries – Tourism

4. 4 Percent of Nonmetro Population that is Black, American Indian, Hispanic by Region: 2000

5. 5 Source: Brewer, C.A., and T. A. Suchan. 2001. “Mapping Census 2000: The Geography of U.S. Diversity.” Census 2000 Special Reports, CENSR/01-1, pg. 64. http://www.census.gov./prod/2001pubs/censr01-1.pdfhttp://www.census.gov./prod/2001pubs/censr01-1.pdf

6. 6 Percent American Indian by Nonmetro and Metro Area s

7. 7 Percent Hispanic by Nonmetro and Metro Areas

8. 8 P ercent Black by Nonmetro-Metro Areas

9. 9 Race / Ethnicity / Age Nonmetro Race/EthnicityNortheastSouthMidwestWest White (not Hispanic)39.440.440.140.3 Black26.031.624.526.0 American Indian34.534.829.730.2 Asian and PI30.033.229.833.3 Two or More Races23.526.921.823.5 Hispanic24.826.123.024.3 Median Age

10. 10 Percent Living in Poverty by Age and Region: 2000

11. 11 Western Region Metro/Nonmetro Areas, Percent Living in Poverty by Age : 1990-2000 AllChildren <18Population 65+

12. 12 Western Region Metro/Nonmetro Areas Percent in Poverty by Age, Race/Ethnicity: 2000 Total PopulationChildren < 18Population 65+

13. 13 West Nonmetro Areas Educational Indicators: 2000 * 16-19 year olds not enrolled in school and not a high school graduate *

14. 14 Immigration in the West Immigration by Region for Nonmetro Areas: 2000

15. 15 Hispanic Representation in Grant County: 1990 - 2000

16. 16 Hispanic Representation in Adams County: 1990 - 2000

17. 17 Percent Hispanics by Census Tract

18. 18 Percent Foreign Born: 2000

19. 19 Percent Change Linguistically Isolated Households*: 1990 – 2000 (Counties with 250 households or more) * A household in which no person 14 and over speaks only English, or no person 14 and over who speaks a language other than English, speaks English very well.

20. 20 Explanations of International Migration Individual motivation Family support Need for low wage labor in wealthy countries Increasing interrelationships between developed and less developed countries Initiation of Migration

21. 21 Explanations of International Migration Family networks ―Legal Institutions  Ex.: Humanitarian organizations that protect the rights of foreign residents ―Illegal Institutions  Ex.: Black market for transportation of illegal immigrants Cumulative Causation Maintenance of Migration Flows

22. 22 Summary Several different sources of diversity for nonmetro counties in west. In past, national policies to combat rural poverty often focused primarily on agriculture. These policies will have little impact on poverty in the nonmetro west. Native American population: a 400 year legacy of discrimination, first by European colonizers, then by United States. Legacy has the biggest impact on West. Still evident, even in 21st century, in extremely high poverty rates of Native Americans, especially in the nonmetro areas of the west. Rapid growth of Hispanic population throughout many areas of the nonmetro west adding to existing diversity. But have very different requirements than older non-Hispanic White population.