Camden Declared The Poorest City in The Nation, Plans To Reconstruct Police Force

According to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 32,000 Camden residents live below the poverty line.

Camden ranked poorest city

Camden bested Reading, P.A., who had the number one spot for several years. Camden moved to the top spot with 42.5 percent of its population considered to be living in poverty.

Amidst being declared the poorest city in the nation, officials also plan to reconstruct its police force. According to the Associated Press, the city will dismantle its police force and create anew with a force ran by the county department.

A change definitely needs to be made.

Officials say there are about 170 drug markets operating in this city of 77,000 near Philadelphia, more than 700 people on parole and 600 registered sex offenders.

Murder rate

And Camden’s murder rate is inconceivably high.

Newark, the largest city in New Jersey, attracted national attention for a record number of homicides in 2007. Yet its murder rate was well below Camden’s 53 per 100,000 that year.

As of Friday, there had been 47 murders this year. The city record of 58 was set in 1995.

Two recent killings have become tragic symbols of the drugs and violence that plague the southern new jersey city.

Since late August, two children, ages 2 and 6, have been killed, allegedly by people authorities believe were high on the powerful drug PCP.

Camden has the nation’s highest poverty rate with more than two in five residents living in poverty, census data show.

In your opinion, what needs to be or should be done to turn around Camden?