Final answer:
Child poverty rates in the USA today have not seen significant improvement since 1970, despite fluctuations in the overall U.S. poverty rate. After peaking at 15.9% during the Great Recession, the rate decreased slightly but disparities among different demographic groups persist.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question at hand is looking into the trends of child poverty rates in the USA today. Over the years, the U.S. poverty rate has experienced several fluctuations. Through the 1960s, there was a notable decline in poverty, likely due to economic growth and policy efforts like the War on Poverty. However, this trend was interrupted by rises in poverty during the early 1980s and early 1990s. A reduction was observed since the mid-1990s, yet the rate never fell below 11% of the U.S. population. Significantly, in the context of different demographics, while the poverty rate for seniors has considerably decreased, child poverty rates have remained relatively unchanged since 1970. Similarly, adult poverty rates have fluctuated but have remained at levels comparable to those in 1970.
In recent milestones, after reaching 15.9% in 2011 amidst the Great Recession, the poverty rate lowered to 14.5% by 2013. It's important to recognize the disparities in poverty rates across different societal groups; whites, the elderly, the well-educated, and male-headed households tend to have lower rates, while rates for females, Hispanics, and African Americans are significantly higher.