Census Update: Diversity Continues to Grow in the U.S. The U.S. population has continued to diversify during the last thirty years, as minority populations continue to increase at a faster rate than the White non-Hispanic population. The White non-Hispanic population was still the largest racial and ethnic group in the U.S., at about 69 percent. As a share of the U.S. population, this is down from about 83 percent in 1970, but in total numbers, at about 196.8 million in 2002, it was the highest it has ever been. In 2002, the Hispanic population became the largest minority in the U.S., with about 13.5 percent of the U.S. population. This was up from about 4.5 percent in 1970, the first Census in which Hispanic origin was identified. The Black population made up about 13 percent of the total population, while Asians and Pacific Islanders composed about 4 percent of the population. American Indians and Alaska Natives comprised about 1 percent of the population. And for the first time in the history of the Census, people were allowed to claim membership in more than one race. About 2.4 percent of the population identified themselves as belonging to more than one race. Hispanic Population Primarily in the West and South People of Hispanic origin share an ethnicity, but may be of any race. Hispanics include Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, South and Central Americans, and others with markedly different characteristics. Almost 60 percent of Hispanics in the U.S. identified themselves as Mexican, nearly 10 percent as Puerto Rican, and 3.5 percent as Cuban. More than three-quarters of all Hispanics lived in the West or the South, accounting for more than 24.3 percent of the population in the West and 11.6 percent of the population in the South. Half of all Hispanics in the U.S. lived in just two states: California and Texas. Three large cities in these states also had a population of Hispanics greater than 50 percent of the total population: Los Angeles, San Antonio, and El Paso. The Hispanic population is also more youthful than the national average: while 25.7 percent of the total U.S. population is under 18 years of age, 35 percent of Hispanics are in this age group. Black Population Remains Highly Concentrated The majority (about 54 percent) of the Black or African American population lived in the South in 2000, and made up 20 percent of the total population of that region. The Black population is also highly concentrated; 2,010 of the 3,141counties in the U.S.- approximately 64 percent of all counties in the U.S. - had fewer than 6 percent Black population. But in 96 counties (all but one in the South), African Americans comprise 50 percent or more of the population. The Black population increased faster than the population as a whole between 1990 and 2000, at 21.5 percent for African Americans versus 13 percent for the entire population. Asian and Pacific Islander a Diverse Population The Asian and Pacific Islander population is made up of many different groups of people, including Asian Indians, Filipinos, Koreans, Native Hawaiians, and Samoans. Many of the people in some groups, such as the Chinese or Japanese, have been in the United States for generations. Other groups, such as the Hmong, Vietnamese, Laotians, and Cambodians, are comparatively recent arrivals to this country. Chinese make up the largest group of Asians, with Filipinos and Asian Indians the next two largest in size. The Asian population in the U.S. is increasing faster than the total population. From 1990 to 2000, the population of those people who identified themselves as being Asian (either alone or in combination with another race) grew 72 percent, while the total population grew only 13 percent. About half of the Asian population lived in the West in 2000, where they made up 9.3 percent of the total population. Over half of all people who reported Asian lived in just three states: California, New York, and Hawaii. American Indian and Alaska Native Fastest Growing Population The American Indian and Alaska Native population is also increasing faster than the population as a whole. In 1990, there were nearly 2 million American Indians and Alaska Natives. The number who declared themselves only American Indian or Alaska Native grew by more than 500,000 in 2000, or 26 percent. The number who declared themselves at least partially American Indian or Alaska Native in combination with other races grew by 2.2 million in 2000, an increase of 110 percent. About 43 percent of all American Indians lived in the West, with 31 percent in the South. Among those who identified themselves as American Indian in the 2000 Census, 79 percent specified a particular tribe. The largest 6 tribes - Cherokee, Navajo, Latin American Indian, Choctaw, Sioux, and Chippewa - composed 40 percent of the American Indian and Alaska Native population. The Alaska Native tribe with the largest population was Eskimo. Two or More Races a Younger Population People who reported more than one race were more likely to be under age 18 than those reporting only one race. Of the 6.8 million people reporting two or more races, 42 percent were under 18. Of those who reported only one race, only 25 percent were under 18. The two-or-more-races population was concentrated in the West. The largest proportion of those reporting two or more races lived in Hawaii: 21 percent of the state population reported more than one race. California had the highest total population at 1.6 million, or 4.7 percent of the population. The Asian, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Pacific Islander populations had the highest proportions of individuals claiming more than one race; the White and Black populations had the lowest. Diverse, Changing Origins The U.S. population includes people with many origins and ancestries. More than 11 percent of the people now living in the U.S. were not born here (as of 2002). This is less than the highest share in the twentieth century (15 percent in 1910), but more than the lowest share (5 percent in 1970). Changes in immigration laws from 1965 to 1990 contributed to increased migration from abroad and generated greater diversity among the newcomers. By March 2002, the estimated foreign-born population of the U.S. included 32.5 million people. More Immigration from Latin America and Asia Since 1970, the composition of the foreign-born population has changed dramatically. Between 1970 and 2002, the estimated share of foreign-born U.S. residents from Europe dropped from 62 percent to 15 percent. Over the same period, the share of foreign-born residents from Asia grew from 9 percent to 25 percent. The share from Latin America also increased significantly from 19 percent to 52 percent. In 2000, two-thirds of foreign-born Latin Americans were from Central America (including Mexico). Differences in Family Size and Education In 2000, 27 percent of family households maintained by a foreign-born householder had five or more members, compared with 13 percent of family households maintained by a native-born householder. Among family households with a Central American householder, 42 percent were this size, compared with only 10 percent of those with a European-born householder. Two-thirds of the foreign-born had a high school diploma or equivalent, in comparison with 87 percent of the native-born population. The high school graduation rates differed by national origin, ranging from 84 percent for those from Asia to 50 percent for those from Latin America. Decline in Older Foreign-Born Population The number of the older foreign-born population (those 65 and over) has held steady at about 3 million since 1960, in spite of the dramatic increase in both the foreign-born population and the older population during this time. The proportion of older people in the foreign-born population has therefore declined sharply, from 32.6 percent in 1960 to 11.0 percent today. Most Foreign-Born Live in the West The foreign-born were more likely to live in the western part of the U.S.. In 2002, almost 40 percent of the foreign born population lived in the West, and they comprised almost 20 percent of the total population. The Northeast has almost 25 percent of the foreign-born population, where they make up almost 15 percent of the Northeast population. The remaining third of the foreign-born population live in the South and the Midwest, where they compose about 9 percent and 5 percent of the population, respectively. Ancestral Heritage Still Largely European For those who identified their ancestries as part of the 2000 Census, most (73 percent) indicated a single ancestry, while the remainder indicated more than one. Some of the largest ancestral heritages were German (15.2 percent), Irish (10.8 percent), English (8.7 percent), Italian (5.6 percent), Polish (3.2 percent), and French (3 percent). More than 7 percent gave their ancestry as "U.S." or "American." Spanish the Most Common Foreign Language According to the 2000 Census, 17.9 percent of the U.S. population aged 5 and older speak a language other than English at home. The most common other language is Spanish: 10.7 percent of the U.S. population uses this at home. California, Texas and New Mexico had the highest proportions of populations speaking other languages at home: all had more than 30 percent of the population speaking a language other than English at home. Disabilities Affect 1 in 5 There were 49.7 million people with some type of long-lasting condition or disability living in the United States in 2000. This represented 19.3 percent of the 257.2 million civilians aged 5 and over who were not living in prisons, nursing homes, and other institutions, or nearly one person in five. Disability Rates Differ by Age and Sex Disability rates rose with age for both sexes, but significant differences existed between men and women. For people under 65, the prevalence of disability among men and boys was higher than among women and girls. In contrast, disability rates were higher for women than men aged 65 and older (43 percent for women, 40 percent for men). Disability Rates Vary among Major Racial and Ethnic Groups According to the 2000 Census, people who indicated that they were White (and no other race) and were not of Hispanic or Latino origin had a low overall disability rate (18.3 percent vs 19.3 percent overall), despite the fact that their median age was higher than for other racial and ethnic groups. Among the racial and ethnic groups examined, people who reported Black and people who reported American Indian and Alaska Native shared the highest overall estimated disability rate of 24.3 percent. Asians who reported only one race had the lowest overall disability rate: 16.6 percent. The overall disability rate for single-race Pacific Islanders (19.0 percent) was slightly higher than the rate for Asians, but not statistically different from the rates for non-Hispanic Whites. And even though people reporting two or more races had the lowest median age, their disability rates were among the highest in 2000 - 21.7 percent overall. The overall disability rate for Hispanics (20.9 percent) was also higher than the overall rate. Disability Linked to Poverty In 2000, 8.7 million people with disabilities were poor - a substantially higher proportion (17.6 percent) than was found among people without disabilities (10.6 percent). The highest poverty rates in both cases were found among children aged 5 to 15: young people with disabilities had a poverty rate of 25.0 percent, compared with 15.7 percent for those without disabilities. Disabilities Higher in the South Almost two out of every five people with a disability lived in the South, while about one in five lived in each of the other three regions of the US. West Virginia, the state with the highest median age in the United States, also recorded the highest disability rate for 2000, 24.4 percent. Alaska and Utah had the lowest rates, each at 14.9 percent. Counties with very high disability rates were clustered in the coal mining areas of Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia. Earnings Lower for People with Disabilities The 1997 median earnings for people with no disability with $23,700, compared with $20,500 for those with a slight disability and $13,300 for those with a severe disability. Among people with disabilities who worked, 34 percent were limited in the amount or kind of work that they could do. One in five workers with a disability had difficulty remaining employed or finding a job.

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