Chicago and the Average Population
Chicago is known to have a grand amount of people that move in each year. Despite that, there are yet more people that are leaving Chicago, and this can raise a lot of concerns as to why there are a lot of people moving out of Chicago than moving in. However, not much attention has been paid towards this issue, and therefore it is beginning to get out of control. There are many theories that surround this issue, as to why there are many people leaving each year. However, even though there are theories that surround this issue, still, nothing seems to be done about them.
Population Decline Since 2020
It seems that in 2020, when COVID was plaguing the entire world, is when the population began to decline, and drastically. “Chicago is currently declining at a rate of -1.65% annually and its population has decreased by -4.86% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 2,741,730 in 2020,” according to World Population Review. Therefore, there was a huge and sudden decrease in population within these past couple of years. Although before 2020, it was already declining steadily, it was not until 2020 that it drastically declined the way it did. It seems to have declined heavily within the beginning of COVID-19, whereas there may have been people who were forced to relocate because of the circumstances.
Are There Flaws? If So, Why Does It Matter?
Flaws are actually a huge problem if there are any that are detected. There was a congressman who decided to speak out regarding this particular issue. “An Illinois congressman is questioning the latest numbers and the federal agency, which he says is fueling “misleading narratives” with its flawed data,” according to AXIOS Chicago. As aforementioned, if there are any flaws when it comes to the data that is being presented, it could lead to massive takeaways when it comes to funding and more. “The data can greatly affect Illinois’ level of federal representation and more than $1 trillion in federal funding over the next decade,” according to AXIOS Chicago. Therefore, it is important that these numbers are accurate, and fully represent the exact population within Chicago. Any wrongful information will certainly not benefit Illinois in any way.
So, What Exactly Caused Such A Huge Decline?
There may have been one huge reason why there was such a large decline in the Chicago population. The biggest answer when it comes to this decline is domestic migration. An example of domestic migration is people that are migrating from a state that experiences a large amount of cold weather to another state, which is typically a warmer state.
This results in the same case in Illinois. “Illinois had more births than deaths in the year that ended July 1, and more inbound international migration. But, domestic migration saw the state lose 141,600. For the year that ended July 1, Illinois lost 110,000 on [the] net,” according to The Center Square. Also, being that there were more births than deaths further proves the point that domestic migration had a lot to do with this decline.
The Future of Chicago’s Population, as well as Migration
The way that it is looking as of right now may show that there may be more migration taking place. Therefore, the City of Chicago needs to take action, and quickly, to prevent more people from leaving Chicago.
In turn, if action is taken, the population within Chicago will surely increase, which will surely benefit the city. However, funding can continue to be allocated towards Illinois and Chicago if flaws are found and fixed immediately.
Written by David Loran Jr
Sources:
AXIOS Chicago: New Illinois population census data questioned
World Population Review: Chicago, Illinois Population 2023
The Center Square: Illinois’ annual population loss is accelerating
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Daniel Gillaspia’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Jernej Furman’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
