The Poorest County in America

Ziebach County in South Dakota has been named America's poorest county. More than 60 percent of the citizens live at or below the poverty line. A large portion of the county's citizens live on the Cheyenne River Sioux Indian reservation which suffers from the bad economy as well. Unemployment among this tribe has hit as high as 90 percent. Norman Merchant from the Associated Press reports that,

"Poverty has loomed over this land for generations. Repeated attempts to create jobs have run into stubborn obstacles: the isolated location, the area's crumbling infrastructure, a poorly trained population and a tribe that struggles to work with businesses or attract investors."

Indian reservations tend to suffer because modernization is simply not a part of their culture. The reservations are gradually industrializing but at this rate, they are unable to keep up with the unstable economy. Ziebach County also suffers because of its lack of natural resources. There is a lot of land available for agriculture but it is lacking in oil reserves. The county is working on finding ways to bring in more jobs and help those in serious need.