Inflation is hurting rural Americans more than city folk — here's why
CBSN
Prices are rising across the U.S., driving up the cost of food, housing, heat, cars and many other essential items. But inflation isn't hitting everyone equally. Data shows that Americans with less education and those living in rural areas are feeling the pinch most acutely.
Among Americans without a college degree, more than half say inflation has caused them financial hardship, compared to 30% of college-educated adults, according to a new Gallup poll. For people earning less than $40,000 a year, 71% said they felt the sting of higher prices — 3 in 10 said the hardships were severe enough to affect their standard of living. Among those making $100,000 or more, the figures were reversed — 71% of six-figure-earners said inflation hadn't caused any hardship, Gallup found.
A recent analysis from Bank of America also underlines how inflation is disproportionately affecting lower-income and rural people. Rural Americans have seen their spending power drop 5.2% on an annualized basis, compared with 3.5% for urban households, the research found.
Earlier this week, Rev. Greg Lewis, an assistant pastor at St. Gabriel's Church of God In Christ in Milwaukee, physically carried one of his parishioners to the polls inside the city's Midtown early voting center to cast a ballot in Wisconsin's upcoming Democratic primary. Supported by crutches and the pastor himself, the disabled man was one of many residents Lewis has helped vote this cycle.
Around 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed when a cargo ship lost power and crashed into it. Officials were able to prevent cars from driving onto the bridge just before the accident, but eight construction workers remained on the structure and plummeted into the river below. Here's how the events unfolded.