"California Migration" by Daniel W.
The history of California is largely tied to migration. Since the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, Americans and Mexicans have migrated to California in search of the American Dream or just a job as a day laborer on a huge farm. This is still symbolized today, e.g. San Francisco 49ers and the Golden Gate Strait. Lately, however, it seems as if people are trying to escape the largest populated “state” in the union. Once seen as a place of hope and prosperity, California is now littered with needles and human feces. Victor Davis Hanson of The National Review even went as far as to call California “America’s First Third-World State.” The modern and most common definition of “third world” is “The underdeveloped nations of the world, especially those with widespread poverty.” Hanson goes on to explain that a third world nation usually consists of: “a predictably corrupt government, unequal or nonexistent applicability of the law, two rather than three classes, and the return of medieval diseases. Third World nations suffer from high taxes and poor social services, premodern infrastructure and utilities, poor transportation, tribalism, gangs, and lack of security.”
The California prison system has been overcrowded for a very long time now. In 2006, the prison population reached 165,000 inmates in an arrangement designed to only house 85,000. Suicide rates were 80% higher than the average U.S. prison, but why is this? In response, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger restructured the California Department of Correction- raising costs to almost $50,000 per inmate annually. In Brown v. Plata, a Supreme Court case in 2011 concerning the California prison system, however, the court ruled: “The conditions in California prisons, particularly for mentally ill people, violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.” In response, California was forced to release more than 30,000 inmates. Since then, California has put in place laws that are less harsh. Initiatives like Proposition 36 and 47 have changed the criminal justice system in California to be more lenient with nonviolent crimes. Even though these laws do not directly affect violent crimes, incidents of rape have risen dramatically. Do you believe this is connected to the changes to the criminal justice system, or something else?
Living conditions in California are increasingly only becoming acceptable for the rich. The middle class is shrinking, and most of them are likely moving out of state. In last year alone, 691,000 Californians moved out of state. Only 501,000 people moved from another state to California in the same period. In the last four years, California has lost over 500,000 people to domestic migration. A large reason for this is the housing cost in California. The median cost of a house in the state is more than double the national median cost. This has led to California having the highest state poverty rate in the U.S. at 18.4 percent. High taxes in California has been a huge part of this. For the last half-decade, the state has had the highest income tax rate in the nation. It currently holds the title of the country’s highest sales tax and second-highest gas tax. Taxes like these have hit the middle class very hard, and the rich are beginning to feel like their contributions do not mean much. After all, one in four homeless people in America lives in California. These are the people that could not afford to move to another state. Even though Californians spend tens of billions of dollars each year to help the homeless, homelessness is still increasing. Some people blame this on drug abuse. In 2018, about 8% of Californians met the criteria for substance use disorder, according to the California Health Care Foundation. Another reason for the title “third world country” is the rise of plagues in California. However, many people are blaming the rise of diseases like Typhoid on climate change.
Is the California Dream over? How would you help the prison system? Will the rest of the U.S. become like this? What do you think are the main reasons for all of these bad things in California? Would you consider moving to California? Should President Trump interfere?
The California prison system has been overcrowded for a very long time now. In 2006, the prison population reached 165,000 inmates in an arrangement designed to only house 85,000. Suicide rates were 80% higher than the average U.S. prison, but why is this? In response, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger restructured the California Department of Correction- raising costs to almost $50,000 per inmate annually. In Brown v. Plata, a Supreme Court case in 2011 concerning the California prison system, however, the court ruled: “The conditions in California prisons, particularly for mentally ill people, violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.” In response, California was forced to release more than 30,000 inmates. Since then, California has put in place laws that are less harsh. Initiatives like Proposition 36 and 47 have changed the criminal justice system in California to be more lenient with nonviolent crimes. Even though these laws do not directly affect violent crimes, incidents of rape have risen dramatically. Do you believe this is connected to the changes to the criminal justice system, or something else?
Living conditions in California are increasingly only becoming acceptable for the rich. The middle class is shrinking, and most of them are likely moving out of state. In last year alone, 691,000 Californians moved out of state. Only 501,000 people moved from another state to California in the same period. In the last four years, California has lost over 500,000 people to domestic migration. A large reason for this is the housing cost in California. The median cost of a house in the state is more than double the national median cost. This has led to California having the highest state poverty rate in the U.S. at 18.4 percent. High taxes in California has been a huge part of this. For the last half-decade, the state has had the highest income tax rate in the nation. It currently holds the title of the country’s highest sales tax and second-highest gas tax. Taxes like these have hit the middle class very hard, and the rich are beginning to feel like their contributions do not mean much. After all, one in four homeless people in America lives in California. These are the people that could not afford to move to another state. Even though Californians spend tens of billions of dollars each year to help the homeless, homelessness is still increasing. Some people blame this on drug abuse. In 2018, about 8% of Californians met the criteria for substance use disorder, according to the California Health Care Foundation. Another reason for the title “third world country” is the rise of plagues in California. However, many people are blaming the rise of diseases like Typhoid on climate change.
Is the California Dream over? How would you help the prison system? Will the rest of the U.S. become like this? What do you think are the main reasons for all of these bad things in California? Would you consider moving to California? Should President Trump interfere?
Works Cited
“2018 Edition - Substance Use in California.” California Health Care Foundation, www.chcf.org/publication/2018-edition-substance-use-california/.
"Brown v. Plata." Oyez, www.oyez.org/cases/2010/09-1233.
Hanson, Victor Davis. “America's First Third-World State.” National Review, National Review, 18 June 2019, www.nationalreview.com/2019/06/california-third-world-state-corruption-crime-infrastructure/.
Martichoux, Alix. “691,000 People Moved out of California Last Year. Here's Where They Went.” SFGate, San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Nov. 2019, www.sfgate.com/expensive-san-francisco/article/move-california-where-to-go-cheap-states-best-14811246.php.
II, Michael Finch. “California's Poverty Rate among Highest in Nation Once Again, New Census Figures Show.” Sacbee, The Sacramento Bee, 10 Sept. 2019, www.sacbee.com/news/california/article234920662.html.
I had no idea the state of California was struggling so badly. I think something should definitely be done to help the poverty rate and decreasing middle class. If the situation in California truly is this bad, I think federal involvement may be necessary and beneficial for all concerned.
ReplyDeleteI never knew that California had it this bad. I never would have thought that this many homeless people live in the area. I think that the government should try to lower the problem of drug abuse and attempt to help more with the number of homeless people.
ReplyDeleteNo name = No grade....
DeleteI never thought about one of the largest states in the US just losing people. I never heard of that many people just completely leaving the state and not coming back. From the facts that you stated it seems like California will have a higher tax because of the diminishing middle class. It is weird to see how once resources in California start getting lower so does the population. I think you did a good job showing the crisis that this state is having. I think people will continue to live in California for the job opportunities, but because of the statistics it seems that the population will continue to go down.
ReplyDeleteI was unaware that California had so many people were desperate to leave the state. The comparison of California to that of a third world country opened my eyes to the problems there today. I had no idea that their taxes were so high and their prisons had such a high suicide rate. As you said, this would explain the rapid decline of middle class peoples in California, with this new found information I may have to change my own "California Dream" and go to a place with less disease and substance abuse.
ReplyDeleteI do think the California Dream is over, it is hard to believe that people would want to leave there. Wonder if more people keep leaving, wonder if their Electoral College votes will change? I think I would help the prison situation by moving more people around the US to different cites with prisons. I dont think the rest of the US will be like this, I feel like California had its fair share of fame, I think people thought it was what they seen in the movies, but once the reality hits, its not that great of a place to live. I think the main reasons for all of these bad things in California are the fact that people think its great, but really, its just another state that has a higher cost of living, and people dont know what to do. I would never consider moving to California. I feel like President Trump shouldn't interfere, their state government should.
ReplyDeleteCalifornia has been in a down hill slide for years now and its really no surprise they are in such awful conditions. Daniel explains perfectly how awful it has become today. Many things within the state should be fixed to help with the poverty and debt especially all the taxes. The fact that the state is losing its middle class shows just how bad taxes and the cost of living there are. If you want more people to live in your state lower the cost of living and taxes. Also clean up the streets of needles and feces.
ReplyDeleteThe California Dream is long over. The state is really only favorable to the rich. I had no idea the unemployment rate was that high. A lot of the time, California is portrayed as an amazing place to live. Teens get most of their information about California from celebrities. The poverty rate seems like that of a third world country. The last time the national poverty rate in the US was that low was in the 1960s. I think the main reason for all of the things happening to California is the promise of the California Dream and then the realization that it doesn't exist. People get caught up with trying to achieve it and don't realize that their money is leaching away.
ReplyDelete