Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District Is the Worst to Live in for Blacks

Victor Westerkamp
By Victor Westerkamp
August 17, 2019US News
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Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District Is the Worst to Live in for Blacks
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) participates in a panel discussion during the Muslim Collective For Equitable Democracy Conference and Presidential Forum at the The National Housing Center in Washington on July 23, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Ilhan Omar’s 5th congressional district is listed as the worst district for black Americans to live in, according to a study by 24/7 Wallstreet.

The 24/7 Wallstreet research institute presented the report on Aug. 14, and used different parameters like median-household income, homeownership, unemployment levels, poverty levels, and educational achievement to measure the level of socio-economic segregation, based on 2017 figures provided by the U.S. Census Bureau.

They analyzed the data and came out with an index, rating Omar’s district—which includes the twin cities Minneapolis and St. Paul—as the worst.

The poverty rate for black Americans in the district is a staggering 37.2 percent; four times higher than white Americans there (9.4 percent). The black unemployment rate is 12.3 percent, three times higher than the whites (4.0 percent).

Moreover, homeownership among blacks is 19.8 percent in Omar’s district, while 63.1 percent of white people own a home of their own.

Historical racial discrepancies and discriminating policies dating back to the early 20th century that still hold their grip on the situation today are blamed for the problem.

“Minneapolis is one of several Midwestern cities that enacted restrictive housing covenants and exclusionary zoning policies in the early 20th century. These policies impact residential patterns to this day,” the study reads.

Furthermore, a congressional district is typically a representation of an area of 700,000 people and is not managed by a central municipality. It can encompass several cities or can be part of a greater city. However, the study explains, “congressional representatives are in a unique position of power to address issues of social and economic inequality within their district.”

In 2018, in a similar research project done by 24/7 Wallstreet, Minneapolis was rated as the fourth-worst district for blacks in the country to live in.

As one of the first black Muslim congresswomen with a multi-racial, multi-religious background, Omar has a hard time staying clear of attacks and allegations from all sides of being racist or anti-semite.

Ilhan Omar to Join Black-Jewish Caucus Despite Repeated Allegations of Anti-Semitism

The office of Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar revealed on June 6 that she will be joining the House’s newly formed Black-Jewish Caucus.

A spokesman for Omar confirmed to Jewish Insider that Omar intends to join the bipartisan committee a day after the Minnesota congresswoman expressed her support for it on Twitter.

“Last month, [Democratic Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky] and I joined together to talk about the common threat of white nationalism faced by Muslim, black and Jewish-Americans,” Omar said. “Glad to see colleagues follow through in working on the things that unite us and not divide us.”

NTD Photo
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) is seen in the audience ahead of President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol in Wash., on Feb. 5, 2019. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

Omar, and fellow Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan became America’s first Muslim congresswomen and their time in office has been embroiled in allegations of anti-Semitism and anti-American sentiments.

Omar has defended her own anti-Israeli statements, such as ones invoking Allah to expose Israel’s “evil doings” as well as promoting age-old anti-Semitic canards such as that Jews’ support of Israel is paid for and that they have a dual loyalty to the U.S. and Israel.

Omar has repeatedly denied she is anti-Semitic, however, she promotes the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to punish Israel by economically depriving the country for its alleged mistreatment of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. The Anti-Defamation League describes BDS as “the most prominent effort to undermine Israel’s existence.”

The Daily Caller News Foundation contributed to this report

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