2005 Reports

Child Poverty in States Hit by Hurricane Katrina

Fass, Sarah; Cauthen, Nancy K.

This fact sheet provides a portrait of poor children in the Gulf Coast states ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans and the surrounding region have long been home to some of the poorest children in the country. Over 13% of children in Louisiana live in extreme poverty—that is, in families with an income less than half of the federal poverty level, or $9,675 for a family of four—compared to a national average of 7%. These children are disproportionately African American. These were, and are, families left behind, physically trapped in areas of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama because they also are trapped by poverty. They had no way out because they have few resources—cash, assets, credit cards, bank accounts, cars, and more. Before Katrina, these families experienced hardship, hunger, and other circumstances that make it difficult for children to thrive. Now many face far worse conditions.