DETROIT – New numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau reveal a grim reality for many Detroit families: more than half of all children in the city are now living below the poverty line.
According to data released in September, 51% of children in Detroit lived in poverty in 2024, a rate that is three times the national average.
The city’s overall poverty rate climbed to 34%, making Detroit the poorest major city in the nation with a population of more than 500,000.
Dr. Luke Shaefer, a poverty and social welfare expert from the University of Michigan, says the numbers reflect deeper economic shifts that have hit working families hard.
“I think it’s because of the labor market,” Shaefer said in a live interview on Local 4 Monday (Oct. 6) evening. “We went from having a really, really strong labor market to starting to slacken, and inflation. People are really struggling with the cost of housing and food.”
Shaefer said Detroit’s child poverty rate now stands out even among other struggling regions.
“We are three times the national average, and I think we’re the highest in the Midwest,” Shaefer said.
The data contrasts with Detroit’s ongoing “comeback” narrative, one often focused on downtown revitalization and new business investment, while many neighborhoods continue to battle economic hardship.
Shaefer said while the numbers are alarming, there is still room for optimism if investments target the right areas. Programs that expand access to affordable housing, job opportunities, and child tax credits, he said, could make a measurable difference.
Detroit leaders and community advocates are calling the report a wake-up call, urging a renewed focus on policies that support working families and lift children out of poverty.