The New US Demographics: Latinos, Asians and Africans

"The numbers reaffirm Latinos as the country's largest minority group, at 42.7 million, and as the fastest-growing segment of the population, with a 3.3% growth rate. The Census Bureau data show that Latino population growth is driven more by births than by immigration.

...The new figures put the total U.S. population at 296.4 million and paint a picture of an increasingly diverse country, with one in three residents belonging to a minority group.

The Washington Post interpreted the statistics somewhat differently:

"Of U.S. Children Under 5, Nearly Half Are Minorities: Nearly half of the nation's children under 5 are racial or ethnic minorities, and the percentage is increasing mainly because the Hispanic population is growing so rapidly, according to a census report released today."

"...In some suburban communities, government officials face a cultural generation gap as they weigh demands from older white residents for senior citizen centers, transportation and other aid against requests from younger, mainly minority residents for translation assistance, preschools and other services."

Quotes from experts, from various sources:

..."Latinos and Asians and Africans are the wave of the future," said William F. Frey, a demographer with the Brookings Institution, a nonpartisan think tank. "Whites are the past and aging quickly." (Los Angeles Times)

"When you look at children born to all immigrants, it accounts for 75% of population growth," said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the conservative Center for Immigration Studies. "What that really points to is the fact that immigration policy is a kind of social engineering. It represents a decision by Congress to change the American population." (Los Angeles Times)

William H. Frey, a demographer with the Brookings Institution, predicted that the United States will have "a multicultural population that will probably be more tolerant, accommodating to other races and more able to succeed in a global economy." (Washington Post)

"This is a continuation of trends with the Hispanic and Asian populations growing rapidly in comparison with the rest of the population," said Bernstein. (AJC)

"We keep thinking of Hispanics as a monolith, but the variety and differences among Hispanic cultures is quite tremendous," said Josie Bacallao, president of the Hollywood-based Hispanic Unity of Florida. (Florida Sun-Sentinel)