Beyond your newsfeed
No matter where you fall on the political preference spectrum, race relations are top of mind for most Americans today. What we see in our social media feeds is extremely inflammatory. Social media is known for being informative, but also for its misdirection.
Is what we see there potentially more inflammatory than the hard data? According to a recent survey by analysts at WalletHub, it’s more complicated than that.
Where the data comes from
Certainly, there is work to be done on closing the equality gap for African Americans in the United States, but WalletHub’s analysts highlight where states rank in racial integration, as well as racial progress. An overview of this content will demonstrate which states are the most racially progressive, and which are the least progressive, with some surprising results.
The information was recorded and measured by data sets such as voter turnout, standardized test scores, and income. To see the full range of dimensions covered, you can view the study in its entirety .
Highly rated states
The survey opens with an overall ranking of the state’s racial integration as it stands currently, but also includes information distinct to the ranking of states historical progress over a period of time. Overall, the results of the survey are seemingly inconsistent across the categories utilized to measure progress and integration.
[clickToTweet tweet=”States that rank as having the highest employment & wealth score much lower for health.” quote=”For example, States that rank as having the highest education & civic engagement and employment & wealth tend to score much lower for health.”]
Hawaii, Idaho, Texas, Kentucky, New Mexico, and Montana are six of the most highly rated states – each with two current racial integration rankings scoring in the top ten.
As mentioned however, the Health ranking in these otherwise top scoring states seems to correlate loosely, almost not at all. New Mexico scored highly in other categories, but the state came in second to last for health.
Lowest ranked states
The nation’s capitol Washington D.C. was the lowest ranked area across the board, coming in last in each of the three categories.
Wisconsin, Kansas, Ohio and Illinois were also all low scoring in each category, making them the least integrated, least progressive places in America.
With many sets of data available as a result of this survey, pulling out the lowest and highest scoring states is just scratching the surface of what information is available.
We can postulate that overall, certain places may not be as progressive. The survey also takes a dive into median income gaps at the high and low end, infant mortality rates, and business ownership. Looking into each category itself, and how it was measured should provide a much deeper understanding of what the analysts accomplished with this survey.
Main takeaway
All information considered, revealed in this survey is something subtly pervasive: “The harsh realities of racial segregation and discrimination are no longer as visible in America as they once were — but they persist.”
If your company is concerned with diversity and equality and struggle in your current location, perhaps it’s time to take a look at other geographies or push harder in your hometown by setting a positive example in hiring and customer service.
#Progress
