Study Suggests These States Made The ‘Most Racial Progress’

Jan 20, 2025

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A study conducted by WalletHub ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day ranked each state by “Racial Integration” and those that have made the most racial progress over time.

WalletHub looked at four key areas of racial progress and integration across each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia: 1) Employment & Wealth, 2) Education 3) Social & Civic Engagement and 4) Health. These were then broken down across 22 relevant metrics, weighted against a 100-point scale. Texas was found to have had the “Most Racial Progress,” with a total score of 64.87. (POPULAR STORY: Leading Cause Of Death Worldwide Revealed)

“The state that has made the most racial progress over the past few decades is Texas, in large part because it has done a lot to close the gap in health outcomes between white and Black residents. The state has reduced the gap in health insurance coverage by 12.4 percentage points since 1995, the most of any state. In addition, Texas has done the most to decrease the share of Black residents suffering from poor health and diabetes. It’s made the second-most progress when it comes to obesity, too,” WalletHub wrote in their analysis.

New Mexico boasted the “Most Racial Integration,” scoring 76.22, followed closely by Hawaii, Arizona, Kentucky, and Texas. Alaska was also in the Top 10 for states with the most racial integration, along with Delaware, Washington, Maryland and Georgia.

What States Scored Lowest?

The least racially integrated area of the U.S. isn’t a state, it’s Washington D.C. (RELATED: Democrats Beat GOP In 2024 Congressional Stock Trading)

D.C. is the worst for median annual income gap, as well as labor-force participation. D.C. was also #49 on the list of “Most Racial Progress.” When asked why some states have been more successful than others in addressing these issues, Swarthmore College assistant professor Edlin Veras said “I think ‘states’ is generous. Perhaps cities or counties might be more accurate. Evanston, Illinois cash reparations program of 2019, and San Francisco’s pilot reparations program of 2023 might be an interesting place to look.”

Northeastern University associate professor Patricia Davis suggested that there’s more to progress and integration than what the federal government can do. “I have always believed that financial literacy should be taught in high school. Children should be taught the importance of building good credit, saving, and the basics of investing. They should also be made aware of the more abstract notions of passing down wealth,” she told WalletHub. “State and local authorities can also initiate programs to encourage responsible homeownership and do a better job of promoting them. Some examples include grants for down payments on homes, loan assistance, financial literacy classes, etc. I am aware that these programs exist—and have for some time—but there should be ways to promote them better.”

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