the 1970s before also closing for good in 1992. The neighborhood has never recovered from these losses, and the population declined by nearly 20%. Modern day Today, South Deering is a primarily black and Latino neighborhood, with some elderly white ethnic residents remaining. The average household income is 43% below the average for the city of Chicago as a whole, and about 25% of the population lives in poverty. Crime is somewhat higher than average, but South Deering has been spared the worst violence that has plagued nearby neighborhoods such as Pullman and South Chicago. The Insane King Cobras and Spanish Vice Lords were founded in this neighborhood in 1979 and 1980, respectively, though violent crime has significantly died down since the early 1990s. Petty crime does remain a problem, however. In recent years, many abandoned factories were demolished, leaving large tracts of polluted land behind. Community activists have fought to establish more natural parkland in the area, and have some former industrial sites designated as Superfund sites, citing the health hazards to residents, with varying degrees of success. Demographics According to a June 2017 analysis by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, there were 15,305 people and 5,068 households in South Deering. The racial makeup of the area was 3.9% White, 65.1% African American, 0.1% Asian, 1.0% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 29.9% of the population. In the area, the population was spread out, with 28.8% under the age of 19, 19.1% from 20 to 34, 16.4% from 35 to 49, 19.6% from 50 to 64, and 15% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. Politics South Deering overwhelmingly voted for the Democratic Party in the past two presidential elections. In the 2016 presidential election, South Deering cast 5,980 votes for Hillary Clinton and cast 486 votes for Donald Trump. In the 2012 presidential election, South Deering cast 6,772 votes for Barack Obama and cast 462 votes for Mitt Romney. Transportation South Deering is served by a number of CTA bus routes: N5 South Shore Night Bus J14 Jeffery Jump 15 Jeffery Local 28 Stony Island 71 71st/South Shore 95 95th 100 Jeffery Manor Express (weekday rush hours only) 106 East 103rd Religion The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago operates Catholic churches. On July 1, 2020, Our Lady Gate of Heaven Church in Jeffery Manor, along with