This guest post is excerpted from Rutgers student Marcus Biddle’s Camden Writes project.
Frankly, there’s nothing wrong with the Philadelphia 76ers building a practice facility anywhere. In a perfect world, it would be a fine offer.
In reality, Camden doesn’t need more buildings, or sports teams.
It needs more jobs.
With every development process, and a soon to be edition of a Philadelphia 76ers basketball practice facility, Camden stillhasn’t escaped the slight from the public eye with every mouth that utters the words: ‘poorest city in America.’
And that’s not an opinion.
In 2012, nearly half of the population (77,000 residents) lived below the poverty line. In 2014, that means that the average person per house makes only $11,670 a year, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The HHS poverty guidelines also show that a family of four making less than $23,850 per year is also living below the poverty line. Essentially, roughly half of Camden is only making nearly 1/3 of New Jersey’s average income around $67,000.
In 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that New Jersey’s unemployment rate reached 8.4%. During that same year, Camden’s unemployment rate was nearly doubled the state average, reaching 16.6%.
As repetitive as these statistics look, it is reality.
Like I’ve stated before, we could be talking about jobs, but instead we’re talking about practice.
With every plan to develop the Camden waterfront, I can’t help but to think that the city is being built to refashion public perception, rather than economic development.
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