Today, the Census Bureau is releasing its first data related to the 2010 census. For those of us who've observed the changing demographics of the United States, this is what we expected.
Examination of the data reveals Hispanics accounted for half of the increase in U.S. population over the last ten years, overall rapid minority growth, growth of suburbs and an aging white population.
"Racial and ethnic minorities are expected to make up an unprecedented 90 percent of the total U.S. growth since 2000, due to immigration and higher birth rates for Latinos. Currently the fastest growing group, Hispanics are on track to exceed 50 million, or roughly 1 in 6 Americans; among U.S. children, Hispanics are now roughly 1 in 4."
The growth in the Hispanic population wasn't confined to states most of us traditionally think of as having significant Hispanic populations, i.e. Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. The Census Bureau data indicates there were significant jumps in Hispanic population in Alabama, Louisiana, and North Carolina.
In addition to the tremendous growth in the Hispanic population, Asians had a larger gain than African Americans, and Americans who identify themselves as "multiracial" increased by more than 25 percent to total 8.7 million.
White Americans, according to the latest Census Bureau data, saw their numbers drop from 69 percent of the population in 2000 to 64 percent in 2010. The primary reason is declining birth rates; the median age for white Americans is now forty-one.
What does this mean for the United States? One important topic is Social Security and the changing face of the workforce.
This issue was the topic of research for "Burden of Support: Young Latinos in an Aging Society." The book, written by David Hayes-Bautista, Werner Schink, and Jorge Chapa and published by Stanford University Press, discusses the fact that, as baby boomers age and retire, the labor force will be increasingly comprised of minority workers and, therefore, the costs of maintaining Social Security and Medicare will increasingly fall to non-white workers while a large number of recipients will be white.
What societal issues may arise from this change in demographics?
We'd be better served if we stepped off the anti-immigration train and began understanding that one of our highest priorities should be educating every member of our changing society. This means investing in education not balancing budgets on the backs of children and, yes, it means paying higher taxes to fund infrastructure such as new schools, new textbooks and better pay for teachers. It's time we, as a society, stopped using teachers and teachers' unions as scapegoats for the economic mess created by giving unneeded tax cuts to the wealthiest two percent, tax subsidies rewarding corporations that take jobs offshore and two unnecessary wars created, in large part, by outrageous lies.
Otherwise, we'll see a quicker decline of the American empire than we're already witnessing.
Otherwise, we'll see a quicker decline of the American empire than we're already witnessing.
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