Some may see the Civil War as an antiquated American anecdote that only matters in history class, however, that would be an understatement far from the truth. This event possesses many after-effects, spanning throughout the South, some of which may still affect an individual today.
At the forefront of this argument is the readily-apparent underdevelopment many post-Confederate states face to this day. A report from the Education Resources Information Center reveals that, “only $1 of every $10 of venture capital invested nationwide goes to Southern states.” Hypothetically, this could be due to the South’s systemic challenges with reconstruction after the Civil War, as a less developed area would reap a lower return-on-investment for prospecting parties, creating a negative feedback loop.
Additionally, an infographic by the Brookings Institution, an American-based socio-economic think tank, suggests that there is an estimated 20 to 40 percent lower rate of social mobility for individuals located in its pre-defined “deep south,” highlighting the failures it has experienced in implementing monetary and career-based opportunities for its residents.
Unfortunately, formerly-Confederate states, such as Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi, have repeatedly ranked within the lower rungs in regards to social services such as education, healthcare and welfare. A document released by the United Health Foundation, a non-profit healthcare organization, exposes a litany of worrying statistics that put all of the aforementioned states and several others in the South in the bottom ten; in categories from education to birthrate. Perhaps, this could be a symptom of the economic disparities between social classes within the American South due to a high level of monetary inequality.
The South is a land of unfortunate consequences caused by unfortunate events, and their ever-relevant persistence evidently remains at the forefront of America’s socioeconomic discussion to this day. If nothing is done to resolve this issue, current Southerners may continue to face difficulties related to a lack of government funding, social mobility, and infrastructure for years to come..
