The reason why violent crime is so high in Arkansas is a result of economic instability, high poverty rates as well as issues with drug and substance abuse that are significant, including transit of drugs and also poor access to healthcare and mental health services and limited employment and educational opportunities.
These issues are also compounded by high recidivism rates and the intersection of mental health challenges with the justice system.
Arkansas also has a drug problem, which is fueled by widespread substance abuse, including marijuana, methamphetamine and opioids.
Arkansas has one of the highest crime rates in the United States and drug related offenses contribute significantly to the problem.
Methamphetamine is the most prevalent illicit drug in Arkansas.
The city that has the worst crime rate in Arkansas is Pine Bluff Arkansas.
Pine Bluff as well as Little Rock Arkansas are identified frequently as having the highest crime rates in Arkansas.
Pine Bluff has the highest violent crime rate in Arkansas and Little Rock has a high crime rate of both violent and property crimes per capita.
And West Memphis Arkansas is also consistently listed among the cities in Arkansas with the highest crime rates, especially for violent crime.
The largest minority in Arkansas is Black and African American that makes up around 15% of the population of Arkansas.
Another significant minority in Arkansas is the Latino and Hispanic population that makes up around 8.5% of Arkansas population.
There are a lot of blacks in Arkansas as Arkansas has a high black population, which comprises up to 15% of the state of Arkansas total population.
Arkansas black population is higher than the national average and the high black demographic in Arkansas has deep historical roots in the state of Arkansas, which influences it's culture and economy, since the early days of European settlement and slavery.
Between 2.6% to 4% of Arkansas is Mexican.
Although the broader Hispanic or Latino population also makes up around 8.5% of Arkansas residents.
Many of the Hispanic Arkansas residents are also from other Latin American countries, and a significant portion also has Mexican ancestry.
The most racially diverse city in Arkansas is the city of Springdale Arkansas.
The primary driver of Springdale being so racially diverse is due to the significant growth in their Hispanic/Latinx population, in which a key segment of the city of Springdale Arkansas's demographic makeup.
Springdale Arkansas is also located in Northwest Arkansas, which is a region that is experiencing substantial population growth and increased diversity.
The city of Springdale Arkansas also features a variety of businesses that are owned by diverse ethnic groups, including Hispanic, African American and Islander communities.
Arkansas was a segregated state although segregation in Arkansas legally ended in Arkansas after the Supreme Court's 154 Brown v. Board of Education decision that declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional.
Although the true desegregation was a protracted process, with major events such as the 1957 Little Rock Nine crisis that highlighted the challenges and the resistance to the ruling.
Although legal segregation ended in the year of 1954 in Arkansas, the schools across Arkansas, including in Little Rock Arkansas, faced ongoing struggles and slow progress in achieving meaningful integration over the following years as well as following decades.
The board decision in May of 1954 had found that racial segregation in the public schools was unconstitutional.
And although Arkansas gained national attention with the 1957 integration crisis at Little Rock Central High School, the stories of schools and districts across the state that had integrated before the year of 1957 have also gone largely unheard.
Little Rock Arkansas still remains sharply segregated.
The suburbs of Little Rock Arkansas along the western end of the highway are also still mostly white, although in the core of the city of Little Rock the highway still serves as a racial dividing line.