Looking for the best way to avoid poverty for you and your family. Research says…..stay married.
Last week the Center for American Progress released a report that the liberal group said shows Marriage is no “panacea for poverty.”
But Researcher W. Brad Wilcox says the report got it wrong. He says in truth, marriage is one important tool—from high-quality education to wage subsidies for low-income jobs— in the fight against poverty.
He says it’s this qualified contribution that marriage can make in the fight against poverty that is largely overlooked in the CAP report.
He offers three facts to prove his point: First, for individual families in a range of circumstances, marriage dramatically reduces the odds of poverty. That statement is true whether you are college-educated or not, black, Hispanic or white, young or middle-aged, your family is markedly less likely to be poor if you are married.
Second, child poverty is much lower in communities with lots of married families. That statement is true even taking into account other factors such as —education, race, and local employment rates —that influence rates of child poverty.
And lastly, the American Dream for poor children is strongest in communities and states with a higher share of married parents. His research finds that children enjoyed higher incomes at age 30 if they were raised in states with a greater share of married families.