The Segregation Index

The Segregation Index

Percentage of black residents in Ferguson, Missouri: 67

Of black police officers: 5.7

Percentage of traffic stops targeting black residents in Ferguson: 86

Of arrests: 93

Distance in miles from Ferguson to St. Louis suburb of Ladue: 10

Rank of Ladue, by median household income, among cities in Missouri: 2

Percentage of black residents in Ladue: 1

Median household income in Ladue: $160,270

In Ferguson: $37,517

Percentage of Ferguson residents living below the poverty line: 24

Of children in Ferguson: 43

Percentage of Ladue residents with a Bachelor’s degree or higher: 83

Of Ferguson residents: 23

Median value of owner-occupied homes in Ladue: $725,700

In Ferguson: $95,300

Percentage of local revenues obtained from property taxes in Ladue: 64

In Ferguson: 12

Percentage of local revenues obtained from court fines in Ladue: 4

In Ferguson: 14

Rank of court fines and fees among local revenue sources in Ferguson: 2

Number of arrest warrants issued by Ferguson court in 2013: 32,975

Estimated population of Ferguson in 2013: 21,111


Colin Gordon is a professor of history at the University of Iowa. He is the author of Mapping Decline: St. Louis and the Fate of the American City (2008) and a companion website.

 

Sources

1, 7. Census 2010

2. Los Angeles Times

3, 4. Missouri Attorney General’s office

5. Google Maps

6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15. Census 2008–2012 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

10, 11, 22. Census 2011–2013 American Community Survey 3-Year Estimates

16, 18. City of Ladue 2014 Budget

17, 19. City of Ferguson Annual Operating Budget, FY 2013–2014

20. Missouri Courts

21. Census 2013 estimate

All census data obtained using American FactFinder.