17 Most Segregated Cities in America

If you are seeking the answers to whether or not the United States still segregated, or what are the most segregated cities in America, then you will definitely find them in this article.

The United States has been the beacon of freedom and equality for the rest of the world for a very long time, but, you will be surprised to learn about the most segregated cities in America 2017 like Jackson, Mississippi (honestly, there’s no surprise with this one) and Detroit, Michigan. Segregation refers to the physical separation of ethnic and racial groups within a metropolitan area. However, in this article, we will only talk about citywide segregation and not about the most segregated states in America. But thankfully, the future is not as bleak, if you take a look at the least segregated cities in America like Tucson, Arizona and Sacramento, California, you can easily see that these cities have integrated their population fairly well. These cities are thriving and serving as models for other such cities. Check out the 10 Least Segregated Cities in America to learn more.

If you are interested enough and raise enough concern, we will certainly work on figuring out most segregated states in America 2017, but for now, let’s just talk about the most segregated cities. In these highly segregated cities, the life of a black person and the life of a white person could not be more different. There are glaring differences in standard of living, income and even the locations where different ethnic communities reside in the city. The 10 Most Racist Cities in America Ranked by Hate Crimes will give you an idea what segregation can do to a community and in extension an entire nation.

To create this list of most segregated cities in America, we basically looked for relevant data from the Internet, and thankfully there were several sources of information. For our research, we utilized data provided by John R. Logan at Brown University and Brian J. Stults at Florida State University, City-Data, Wired and 24/7 Wall Street. We also put Google’s search engine through its paces for finding out additional information as well. In our research, we found that although segregation has been legally abolished since the 1960s evidence suggests that segregation is still around in practice.

We based our ranking on the percent of people belonging to the same racial group living in close proximity. For example, if the majority of the black population of a given city lives in designated neighborhoods (usually in a poverty-stricken area) for blacks, then we can consider that city to be segregated. Please keep reading, and things will become clearer as we step into the list section of this article. So, let’s get the list of 17 most segregated cities in America started. 

17. Los Angeles, California

Hispanic People in Hispanic Neighborhood: 28.2%

Los Angeles has a larger number of Hispanic people living in the city, with about 48.8% people in Los Angeles belonging to the Hispanic ethnicity. The unfortunate thing is that about 28.2% of the entire Hispanic population lives in Hispanic neighborhoods.

16. Washington, D.C.

Black People in black neighborhoods: 29.1%

At number 16, we have the very capital of the United States. About a quarter of the entire city’s population is black, and as you can see, 29.1% of the entire black population resides in black neighborhoods. The poverty rate for the black population of the city is 13.2% where in contrast, the poverty rate for the white population is around 4.6%.

15. Dayton, Ohio

Black People in black neighborhoods: 29.6%

In Dayton, Ohio the majority of the population is white, which makes up about 77% of the entire population of the city. But, there is still a significant Black population living in the city, but unfortunately, a large number of black people are living in mostly black neighborhoods, 29.6% to be exact. The poverty rate for blacks is very high for this city, and about 34.1% of the black population are living in poverty.

14. Atlanta, Georgia

Black People in black neighborhoods: 31.3%

Atlanta is one of the most ethnically diverse metropolitan cities in the country. A third of Atlanta’s entire population is black, but we are more interested in learning about the percentage of blacks living in mostly black neighborhoods. As you can see, a third of Atlanta’s entire black population lives in such neighborhoods.

13. Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Black People in black neighborhoods: 31.7%

Did you know that the average black household in Louisiana’s capital makes about half of what an average white household makes in a year? And we are merely talking about the average households here — the difference is even greater in practice. More than a third of the entire black population of Baton Rouge lives in segregated black neighborhoods.

12. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Black People in black neighborhoods: 32.3%

In our research we found Philadelphia to be the 12th most segregated city in the United States and for good reasons. Philadelphia has a long history of racial violence and segregation. Fortunately, things have changed a bit, but the remnants of the olden days are still visible in the segregated black neighborhoods scattered around the city.

11. Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Black People in black neighborhoods: 36.1%

At number 11, we have Milwaukee, and we experience a huge spike in the percentage of black people living in black neighborhoods here. From 32 % to 36%, which is a significant increase. About a quarter of a million blacks living in Milwaukee live in Milwaukee County in black neighborhoods, where the white population lives in the suburban areas like Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington counties.

10. St. Louis, Missouri

Black People in black neighborhoods: 39.3%

Next up in our list is Saint Louis, Missouri. St. Louis is home to the highly controversial Pruitt-Igoe towers. However, we will not get into the details about that here, but we recommend that you look it up for a brief look into American history before segregation was outlawed. Segregation may be outlawed now, but over 39.3 percent of the entire black population of St. Louis lives in black neighborhoods even today.

9. Birmingham, Alabama

Black People in black neighborhoods: 39.4%

There is really a small difference between Birmingham, Alabama and St. Louis, Missouri when it comes to black people living in black neighborhoods, which is about a mere 0.1 percent. However, if you consider the total number, for Birmingham (which is about 39.4%) it’s huge. This basically means every 4 black people in 10 lives in a black neighborhood, which are generally underprivileged, and poverty and crime-stricken.

8. Baltimore, Maryland

Black People in black neighborhoods: 41.6%

We are halfway through our list of 17 most segregated cities in America, and at number 8 we have Baltimore. Baltimore is a beautiful city, thriving with life and joy but the city also hides a dark secret. Baltimore is one of the most segregated cities in the entirety of United States. Here over 40% of the entire black population lives in segregated black neighborhoods. As you can imagine, life in those neighborhoods is not something exciting, to say the least.

7. Buffalo, New York

Black People in black neighborhoods: 43%

Buffalo, is one of the most segregated cities in America, and it has been that way for a couple of decades now. Studies indicate that the city is really struggling to deal with this glaring issue, as a large portion of its entire population drifts further and further away from the national average for everything. Of course, we are talking about the black population here. About 37% of the entire black population of the city lives at or below the poverty line.

6. New Orleans, Louisiana

Black People in black neighborhoods: 43.1%

Statistically speaking, the difference between New Orleans, Louisiana, and Buffalo, New York is not that great. But for the people living in the city, especially for the black community, living in segregated areas is the way of life. Despite being outlawed way back in the 60s segregation is very real in the city of New Orleans.

5. Cleveland, Ohio

Black People in black neighborhoods: 45.4%

As we get close to the top of our list of most segregated cities in America, we start finding cities that basically have statistics of that mirror the segregation situation prior to segregation being outlawed. It is really a shame, but it’s also a grave reality for people living in those cities. For the black population of Cleveland, Ohio almost half of the population resides in black neighborhoods, where the poverty and unemployment rate is way above the national average.

4. Memphis, Tennessee

Black People in black neighborhoods: 46.4%

At number 4 on the list of most segregated cities in America, we have Memphis, Tennessee. Here, 46.4% of the entire black population resides in segregated black neighborhoods. If something is not done to remedy the situation, things could take a turn for even worse. They could end up with even a higher degree of segregation in the city, which would be a shame, to be honest.

3. Jackson, Mississippi

Black People in black neighborhoods: 47.7%

The third place in this list of most segregated cities in America, goes to Jackson, Mississippi. In Jackson, almost 50% of the black population has been segregated into black neighborhoods. Poverty and a feeling of inequality run rampant in these neighborhoods and has for a very long time. These subjects are unpleasant, but these are realities we can no longer deny. As this is the third place on our list, things can only get worse from here.

2. Chicago, Illinois

Black People in black neighborhoods: 50.1%

From the most recent data, we found that over half of the entire black population of Chicago lives in segregated neighborhoods, and a large part of that population lives on the city’s Southside. Something has to be done to remedy the situation, and this superficial division must be dealt with as soon as possible if we are to prosper as a nation united in every aspect.

1. Detroit, Michigan

Black People in black neighborhoods: 55.3%

The last entry in our list is going to be Detroit, Michigan, where more than half of the entire black population has been segregated. The surprising thing about Detroit is that almost 80% of the city’s entire population is black. Now imagine the massive number of blacks living in segregated neighborhoods. Between its economy and segregation, the city has a lot of work to do.

This wraps it up for our list of 17 Most Segregated Cities in America.