Study: Georgia, Texas and Mississippi have made the ‘most racial progress’ in the U.S.

America has come a long way in terms of race since the Civil Rights Movement, but there’s still a lot more work to do for true equality. A surprising 44% of Americans are not too hopeful about the country’s future in ensuring racial equality. On the other hand, only 28% are somewhat hopeful or really believe it can happen.

The reason for this lack of hope is clear when you look at money and jobs. For instance, the average yearly income for white, non-Hispanic men is about $20,000 more than black men. Also, more black people are out of work compared to white people.

But it’s not all bad news. We’ve made some good strides towards racial harmony in places like our offices, schools, and even in voting. WalletHub did a study on this, checking out how black and white people compare in 22 important areas like income, school test scores, and how many people vote. They looked at all 50 states and Washington D.C. to get this information.

”It’s encouraging to see that many of the states that were the most resistant to integration have made substantial progress toward racial equality in the past fifty years or so. In fact, four of the states that have made the most racial progress overall are actually now among the top 10 most integrated states, which shows that both people’s attitudes and government policies have changed dramatically,” said WalletHub Analyst Cassandra Happe.

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Georgia, Texas and Mississippi are on the top of the most racial progress list according to WalletHub. These three states scored 65.74, 65.16 and 62.67 points respectively. They are followed by New Mexico (62.03 points), Wyoming (61.45 points), Connecticut (61.3 points), New Jersey (61.16 points), Maryland (60.61 points), Florida (59.4 points) and North Carolina (59.37 points) sitting on the 10^th position. The full list can be seen here.

Georgia

Georgia stands out as the leader in racial progress in the United States. Impressively, it has narrowed the income difference between white and black Americans by more than 32% since 1979, the best achievement in the country. Additionally, the difference in business ownership between these groups in Georgia has dropped by over 11% since 2002.

Moreover, Georgia is among the top states in reducing poverty among black people and boosting the number of black executives.

Texas

In Texas, which is second in racial progress, a key achievement is leading the nation in reducing the health insurance gap between white and black people, a reduction of over 13% since 1995.

Texas also stands out for its progress in education, particularly in the number of black versus white residents holding a bachelor’s degree. Since 1970, Texas is one of the few states where this educational gap is shrinking, not widening.

Mississippi

Mississippi ranks third in racial progress, largely due to its nearly 27% decrease in the poverty rate gap since 1970, the most significant reduction in the U.S.

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Mississippi is also at the forefront in reducing the educational gap at the high school level. It has made notable improvements in areas like voter equality, healthcare access, and home ownership.