ABSTRACT
In 1950, a substantial portion ofthe urban black population was poor but working. Urban poverty was quite extensive, but people held jobs. However, in many inner-city ghetto neighborhoods in 1990, most adults were not working in a typical week. For example, in 1950, 69 percent of all males 14 and over held jobs in a typical week in the three neighborhoods that represent he historic core of the Black Belt in Chicago--Douglas, Grand Boulevard, and Washington Park. But by 1990, only four in ten in Douglas worked in a typical week, one in three in Washington Park, and one in four in Grand Boulevard. In all, only 37 percent of all males 16 and over held jobs in a typical week in these neighborhoods.
