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THE
RURAl
EXODUS
A modern-day exodus of rural people is con–
vergmg upon big cities everywhere. Farmers,
peasants and sma/1-town folk are fleeing the
grip of rural poverty. But are they finding
a
better life in the big city?
Text and Photography by
Jerry
Gentry
W
o wouw
have belicvcd ir
100 years :tgo? From Amcr–
ica's hearrland ro che Bra–
zilian ourback, from Sourh Africa's
plarreland ro che ciny agricultura! vi l–
lages of Sourheasrern Asia, rural
people everywhere are picking up
rheir earthly possessions and moving
ro rhe big city.
Prior ro 1850, rhere was no nation
wirh a primarily urban populacion.
The world was mostly rural. Bur ar
che rurn of rhe cenrury, rhc crearion
of a truly urban world bccamc a dis–
tincr rrend. Grear Brirain led rhc way
ro urbanization, achieving rhc srarus
of an urban-orienred sociery by 1900.
Soon. other narions followed as in-
POPULATION:
O -
lincoln Volley,
North Dokoto. Broken windows and
boarded up store fronts mork the death
of this American town. Accomponying
article explains why mony once-thriving
rural communities ore drying up.
dusrrializarion progressed. Now. prac–
rically all rhe "have" narions are
largely urban and rhe "have-nors" are
following suir rapidly.
Already, over 33 percenr of che
world's popularion is urban. Kurr
Waldheim, Secrerary General of rhe
Unircd Narions, estimares che world
urban popularion by A.D. 2000 will
be 4 billion, compared wirh only 1.33
billion roday.
Mid-America Moves to Town
Only a cenrury ago. farmers and
rural villagers of che Unired Srares
made up rhree fourths of rhe U. S.
popularion. Todav. 70 percenr of
all
Americans in rhe Unired Srares live
on 1.5 percenr of rhe land.
This unserding phenomenon is af–
fecring rhousands of once-rhriving
small rowns across rhe U. S. hearr–
land. Once busrling communities
have dwindled ro insign ificance. Only
a sragnarcd hulk, a nosralgic dream of
35