Contributive Research Paper
Contributive Research Paper
A Contributive Research Paper is a paper that contributes to existing scholarly discourse usually based on research and observation of a topic.
The general opinion of the growing migration to the Horry County area is that it is a resoundingly good development. Although the sentiment behind this claim is good in intention, the growing investment in Horry County has raised both new and continuing issues to the forefront of the public consciousness. These issues include costs of goods, tax allocation, costs of living, rising house prices, natural destruction, and historical preservation.
To get one accusation out of the way, when talking about migration to the Horry County area, it is important to distinguish the migration of working-class Americans from the Southeast and the large migration of older, affluent Americans from the Northeast and Rustbelt (Horry Gov. 2.2). The immigration of Americans from the Southwest has little effect on the economic inequality facing Horry County residents. They, in fact, provide economic and social benefits to the region since their place as a high-consumption, low-cost workers mean only good things for local enterprise. Contrast this with the populace immigrating from the Northeast, who are largely low-consumption, high-cost retirees (2.7). These people are heavily interested in the lucrative business endeavors of the tourist industry and leisure such as golf. Since these industries are limited to a few large firms, much of the wealth is allocated in a position above the Horry County local, meaning a small percentage of the profits from this business facilitate into local positives. This allows Northerners to have unbridled control over local government initiatives, zoning, and spending. As a result, the local government becomes intensely interested in primarily economic affairs, to which locals suffer under the consequences of the Northerner’s decision.
With that out of the way, it is critical to include that the so-called ‘positive’ developments caused by Northern immigration to the area are not apparent in the least. Local poverty rates are still above the national average and is currently on an upward trend (2.11). Despite the increased rate of investments in Horry County, the median household income in the area remains consistent with the rate of surrounding counties, despite these surrounding counties not having nearly as much real estate or business investments (2.10). Minority-dominated areas, which are in the closest proximity to the dense tourist industry on the beachfront, are still disproportionally affected by poverty compared to their white counterparts (2.8, 2.11). These minority-dominated areas are also disproportionally affected by the prevalent natural disasters in the county (2.12).
In relation to crime within Horry County, not much has changed. In fact, in recent years, Horry County has led the state in human trafficking for 3 straight years, increasing over the pandemic period (Benson). Rape rates in Horry County is the highest in the state, larger than both Charleston and Columbia (FBI). Although property crime is not as apparent as in other parts of the state, Horry County is a comparatively non-dense area with large swaths of suburban communities, allowing upper-class locals to rarely but shoulders with lower-class locals. Crime is an intrinsically class-based issue, and if the new wave of financial investment in the county is improving the lives of the people within it, then why is crime still such a large problem?
In Myrtle Beach, the largest municipality in the county, the major rise in the cost of living has caused local workers to move into the periphery or even outside the county, causing longer commute times and increased general inefficiency for the workers. According to a report conducted by Habitat for Humanity for Horry County, “A single worker in the accommodation and food services, retail trade or arts, entertainment and recreation sectors earn an income that could allow them to pay no more than $600 per month in rent. However, the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Myrtle Beach is about $900” (Haynes). Habitat for Humanity Director of Workforce Housing Chad Charles says that the rent numbers from this report “likely jumped at least that much again last year” (Haynes). This means that the cost-of-living burden for already impoverished locals in Myrtle Beach has been considerably worse since the arrival of affluent Northerners, when many are arguing that these affluent Northerners are fiscally improving the area.
In Conway, the seat of the Horry County government, the problem is also not that much better. According to an interview with Rev. Dr. Kenneth Floyd Sr., former President of the local chapter of the NAACP, the city of Conway has a massive wealth disconnect between Black locals and White locals. He says that Black locals are consistently displaced after natural disasters by the local government, and that the local government often disregards the wishes of their black constituents for the purposes allocating that money for business aspirations. The recent entrance of growing enterprise in Horry County has allowed Conway to use the increased tax revenue for historical preservation projects, unless that preservation project pertains to the Black community.
The Whittemore Elementary School, a former elementary school that has foundational roots to the early 20th century, is a prime example of this. Whittemore, according to Dr. Floyd, was an incredible influence on him and the older Black populace. It also embodies a history of racial discrimination and segregation that has been forgotten by locals. He finalizes his position by saying that if the local government can turn one of their white schools into a museum (in reference to the Horry County Museum and Library), they can most certainly preserve the Whittemore Elementary for the same purpose. Conway initially promised to renovate the school, but after the COVID-19 pandemic, they decided to destroy it. Now, after massive backlash from the locals in the area, they have decided to collaborate with the locals to turn Whittemore into a community center. This situation goes to show that many of the issues that preceded the expansion of Horry County are now exacerbated by business interests corrupting the spending habits of the local government.
In conclusion, much of the discourse on this problem is framed within the perspective of the business owner rather than the perspective of the local. The average person within the county does not, in any which way, benefit from the increased presence of financial moguls. There is also nothing inherently wrong with immigration from the North. But due to the higher income of most Northerners in comparison to locals, and the fact that these Northerners are older and have accumulated a massive financial portfolio, they exert a large amount of influence compared to the locals. This influence causes much of the issues that exist in the area to be left unchecked or minimized in importance. If Horry County is to avoid a punishing wealth gap, it should start changing what their priority is.
Benson, Adam. “Why Horry County Remains SC's Human Trafficking Hot Spot.” Post and Courier, 15 Jan. 2022, https://www.postandcourier.com/myrtle-beach/news/why-horry county-remains-scs-human-trafficking-hot-spot/article_7d2463a8-74c7-11ec-9fc1-2ba030810268.html.
Haynes, Jonathan. “Myrtle Beach Workers Have Longer Commute Due to Rising Housing Costs, Report Says.” MyHorryNews.com, 6 July 2021, https://www.myhorrynews.com/news/myrtle-beach-creating-more-workforce-housing-as-cost-of-living-increases/article_f39c8080-ac2f-11eb-ac14-7ba9872b3677.html.
“IMAGINE 2040.” Horry County Government - Home, 10 Dec. 2019, https://www.dropbox.com/s/3jn34tfp5fnohi1/%21ADOPTED%20IMAGINE%202040%20with%2012.08.2020%20Amendment%20-%20compressed.pdf?dl=0
Mojo, Connor V, and Kenneth Floyd. “Interview with Rev. Dr. Kenneth Floyd Sr. Concerning Whittemore Elementary School in Conway, South Carolina.” StoryCorps Archive, 25 Oct. 2022, https://archive.storycorps.org/interviews/interview-with-rev-dr-kenneth-floyd-sr-concerning-whittemore-elementary-school-in-conway-south-carolina/.
“SOUTH CAROLINA Offenses Known to Law Enforcement by Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Counties, 2016.” Crime in the United States in 2016, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2017, https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2016/crime-in-the-u.s.-2016/tables/table-8/table-8-state-cuts/south-carolina.xls.