Study names Milwaukee ninth poorest city in America



Milwaukee has been named the ninth poorest city in America, according to the Brookings Institute.

It's not a list the city wanted to find itself on, but many groups don't see an end to an explosion of poverty here in Milwaukee.

The study indicates that there are more than 45 census tracts with concentrations of poverty where more than 40 percent of the area residents are in extreme poverty.

Sherrie Tussler with the Hunger Task Force says she has seen an explosion in terms of people needing their services.

"People are not making a living wage. In the past, it was just simply get a job and you would be out of poverty. Now, even if you have a job, you're not out of poverty," Tussler said.

Bob Burmeister is the founder of Mr. Bob's Under the Bridge. It is an outreach ministry that has been helping hand out clothes and toiletries on the streets for five years.

Burmeister says he's not surprised to see Milwaukee so high on the list.

"Ride with me. You'll believe it too. There are a lot of people in need. This all started with my car and a little four by six trailer. Then we went to a truck and a trailer. Then, we went to a big truck and a trailer," Burmeister said.

The study says the Midwest and the South have seen the largest growth in poverty. Social agencies blame the fact that so many industrial jobs have left town.

The Brookings Institute study looked at the 100 most populated cities in the country. Some of the other cities that were high on the list include Jackson, Mississippi, Detroit, Michigan, and Youngstown, Ohio.