BY STUDENT
The United States has experienced a significant increase in the Latino population in the past thirty years, evidently shown through the census. The Latino population more than doubled from 1990 to 2000, from a population of 22.4 million to 35.3 million. The population growth is not only observed in big cities, but also smaller ones. Personally speaking, I was raised in a suburban neighborhood in upstate NY in which my family and I were the only people of color. I was in elementary school and I was the only non-white student in my class along with a total of three Latino students in my entire grade. By the time I graduated, the school remained a white majority, however there was an increase in non-white students, many of who were Latino. So when the Latino population increased, where did the migrants settle and more importantly, what implications might this have on the future population? In this blogpost I will discuss the localization of the Latino immigrants in the United States as well as the future of minority populations in the U.S.
As we have learned throughout this course, the Latino population tends to be concentrated in certain areas, not necessarily by choice but due to systemic blockades that prevent them from moving elsewhere. In the study, “The New Metro Minority Map: Regional Shifts in Hispanics, Asians, and Blacks from Census 2010,” William Frey points out that approximately 50% of the Hispanic population is concentrated in only 10 metro areas (1). The two largest of these metro areas being Los Angeles and New York. An interesting point to note is that Mexican migrants played the largest role, approximately 75%, in the Hispanic population growth. Not only were Latino populations concentrated in specific cities throughout the U.S., but they were concentrated within the cities, as well. According to Laura Limonic in “The Latino Population of New York City, 2007,” within NYC in 2007, approximately 30% of Latinos were living in the Bronx, about 22% in Brooklyn, 27% in Queens in 2007, 18% in Manhattan and 3% in Staten Island. Unsurprisingly, more than half of the NYC Latino population has remained concentrated in the Bronx and Queens since the first large migration of Latinos to NYC.
But what does this population growth mean for the future population of the United States? With an increase in diversity and population of minorities in cities, the population of young minorities also increases. Cultural diffusion allows for further growth of Latino and mixed race children. According to the article “U.S. Metros Are Ground Zero for Majority-Minority Populations” by Nate Berg, the majority of babies under one years old are minorities. This information suggests that within the next few decades, the population will shift from a majority caucasian population to a minority-majority population. In addition to the shift of minority-majority populations in cities, populations in smaller cities also see an increase in Latinos. For example, Scranton, Knoxville, and Charleston experienced the largest growth in Hispanic population from 2000-2010 (Frey 8). In summary, the Latino population has demonstrated an upward growth in small and large cities in the United States, and data suggests that current minorities may become the majority in the near future.
Citations
Berg, Nate, and Nate Berg. “U.S. Metros Are Ground Zero for Majority-Minority Populations.” CityLab, May 18, 2012. https://www.citylab.com/equity/2012/05/us-metros-are-ground -zero-majority-minority-populations/2043/.
Frey, William H. “The New Metro Minority Map: Regional Shifts in Hispanics, Asians, and Blacks from Census 2010.” Brookings. Brookings, July 28, 2016. https://www.brookings.edu/ research/the-new-metro-minority-map-regional-shifts-in-hispanics-asians-and-blacks -from-census-2010/.
Limonic, Laura. “The Latino Population of New York City, 2007.” CUNY Academic Works, December 2008. https://academicworks.cuny.edu/clacls_pubs/48/.
“The Hispanic Population 2000 - Census,” May 2001. https://www.census.gov/prod/ 2001pubs/c2kbr01-3.pdf.
The facts that were pointed out in this blog post represent a great shift in future generations regarding the population. As the minority-majority community gradually increases looking at census information I believe, as you mentioned, that cultural diffusion impacts this significantly. As people become more aware of other cultures beliefs and traditions this will allow for more acceptance among different ethnicities. This could potentially give us a great leap into the future and accepting diversity among varying lifestyles.
ReplyDeleteI also grew up in a town where I was one of the only people of color growing up. Interestingly enough by the time I got to high school there was a high prevalence of Latinx. Now since I have felt high school the number of people of color has grown even more and there is now clubs and organizations geared toward the culture. I grew up in the suburbs and many of the Latinx students where coming from the city. I have also noticed that many of these families live in separate public apartment in my town which really speaks to the relation of space. Although moving toward a minority - majority population, and moving outside the city area there is still has not been a shift in the way Latinx people are treated when it comes to space. I liked how you included specific statistics to suggest the raise in the population. In the future it will be interesting to see how the raise in population affects the suburbs, local businesses, schools, etc.
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