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CLEVELAND — Nearly one in six Americans is living in poverty.

A report from the Census Bureau on Wednesday says poverty levels have not changed since 2010.

Radio host Tavis Smiley and Cornell West began a four-state tour in Cleveland called “Poverty 2.0.”

The tour will address poverty in four battle ground states. The duo will host six town hall meetings over four days in Florida, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Ohio.

“There is a reason why Ohio matters. The nation is looking to Ohio for some clues,” Smiley says.

The clues may be linked to Ohio’s unemployment numbers. Ohio is a full percentage below the national average of 8.2 percent.

In July we told you 67 percent of those in poverty are now in the suburbs — numbers that can be seen nationwide.

“It is growing by leaps and bounds in the suburbs. We have the unemployed the under employed,” Smiley says.

As presidential campaigns continue across Ohio, Smiley and West want this issue on the forefront.

For more information on the poverty tour go to http://www.povertytour.smileyandwest.com/

http://www.wkyc.com/news/article/260652/16/Poverty-20-tour-kicks-off-in-Cleveland

Article Courtesy of WKYC Channel 3 News