Reality check on Y’town poverty

Recent news from the U.S. Census Bureau that pegs childhood poverty in Youngstown as the second highest among 575 U.S. cities is troubling — but hardly surprising.

Over the past several years, the city has witnessed a recovery from the Great Recession that’s been far more anemic than in the rest of the Mahoning Valley and the rest of the nation. For decades since the colossal implosion of the city’s once robust steel industry, Youngstown has struggled and continues to struggle to regain solid economic footing.

Nonetheless the new Census report that shows 63.3 percent of Youngstown residents under age 18 lived in poverty in 2013 shocks the senses anew, particularly because the city’s poverty rate has increased 10 percentage points over the past five years alone. The report also sounds an alarm of the urgency to strengthen the city’s economic foundation and to fortify the safety net for thousands of desperate children and their families.

WHAT TO DO?

Toward those ends, city officials, community service groups and business leaders must tighten their bonds toward the common goal of increasing job and educational opportunities in the city — the primary long-lasting tickets out of poverty. Signs of hopeful progress have been achieved but clearly not enough to make a substantial dent in urban poverty and helplessness.

To deal with pressing immediate needs, however, all of us can help. Residents can start by turning to 21 WFMJ-TV, The Vindicator’s broadcast partner, which is in the midst of its eighth annual Project: Feed Our Valley campaign. WFMJ is partnering with the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley to gather thousands of pounds of food for the needy over the holiday season. Donations of food are accepted at Sparkle markets in the Valley. Compassionate Valley residents should place a commitment to Project: Feed Our Valley atop their holiday to-do lists.