Upward Mobility Equally Easy in Liberal and Conservative States
Despite claims in favor of blue states
Is it easier to climb the economic ladder in red America or blue America?
In the wake of a new study on upward mobility released last week, economists and writers have been debating that question. To some — and to some readers of my article on the study — the data seemed to suggest that climbing from poverty to the middle class and beyond was harder in conservative states than in liberal ones. Looking at the map that ran in last Monday's Times, the immediate impression is that some of the lowest rates of mobility occur in the solidly Republican Deep South.
Yet that immediate conclusion turns out to be misleading. The odds of escaping poverty are nearly identical in liberal regions and conservative regions, at least according to this study, which some economists regard as the most comprehensive mobility analysis to date.
Hide Comments (0)
Editor's Note: As of February 29, 2024, commenting privileges on reason.com posts are limited to Reason Plus subscribers. Past commenters are grandfathered in for a temporary period. Subscribe here to preserve your ability to comment. Your Reason Plus subscription also gives you an ad-free version of reason.com, along with full access to the digital edition and archives of Reason magazine. We request that comments be civil and on-topic. We do not moderate or assume any responsibility for comments, which are owned by the readers who post them. Comments do not represent the views of reason.com or Reason Foundation. We reserve the right to delete any comment and ban commenters for any reason at any time. Comments may only be edited within 5 minutes of posting. Report abuses.
Please
to post commentsMute this user?
Ban this user?
Un-ban this user?
Nuke this user?
Un-nuke this user?
Flag this comment?
Un-flag this comment?