Thread by @BrianMannADK

North Country thread #ny21: this has huge implications for the #adirondacks region. Our population is already older than the national average which means even fewer births 1/

https://twitter.com/WilcoxNMP/status/1389904910238588928

When you combine this with our lack of appeal to immigrants the math is devastating. Demographic decline is inevitable without a profound shift 2/

Because so many of our communities and counties are already very low population the impacts could be felt very swiftly and indeed are manifested in closing schools churches groceries etc 3/

One irony is that the #ny21 was settled fairly recently by immigrants but the region has adopted a broadly conservative attitude toward new migrants from places like Central America who could breathe new life into communities 4/

I suspect we'll see the same demographic narrative play out in much of rural America. It's devastating to those of us who love small town life /end