Puerto Rico's Projected 2100 Population Minus 1 Million to 2.8 Million

According to UN data, Puerto Rico's population will fall to 2.8 million by 2010. That's a loss of 1 million people from its high of 3.8 million in 2000. The island's population slide is also in sharp contrast to predicted increases in US, hemispheric and global totals.

Population Pyramids of the World 1950-2100

Florida's Fast Growing Puerto Rican Population

Believe it or not, pero Cubans account for little more than a quarter (28%) of Florida's Latino population -- and shrinking! That is, 3 of 4 Floridian Latinos are now nonCuban. Puerto Ricans are the state's 2nd largest Latino group at 850,000 (2010 census) and growing rapidly (migration/youth). 

The Sunshine State's Puerto Rican population grew 75% between 2000 and 2010, mostly in Central Florida, and they now make up 13% of Orange County and 27% of Osceola County. Barring another Mariel boatlift or exodus, the 2020 census may show Puerto Ricans eclipsing Cubans in La Florida.

Interactivemap: Census 2010: Puerto Rican population in Florida

The Mexican-American Boom: Births Overtake Immigration

From the Pew Hispanic Center...

Births have surpassed immigration as the main driver of the dynamic growth in the U.S. Hispanic population. This new trend is especially evident among the largest of all Hispanic groups-Mexican-Americans, according to a new analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center. 

In the decade from 2000 to 2010, the Mexican-American population grew by 7.2 million as a result of births and 4.2 million as a result of new immigrant arrivals. This is a change from the previous two decades when the number of new immigrants either matched or exceeded the number of births.

The current surge in births among Mexican-Americans is largely attributable to the immigration wave that has brought more than 10 million immigrants to the United States from Mexico since 1970. Between 2006 and 2010 alone, more than half (53%) of all Mexican-American births were to Mexican immigrant parents. As a group, these immigrants are more likely than U.S.-born Americans to be in their prime child-bearing years. They also have much higher fertility.

Meanwhile, the number of new immigrant arrivals from Mexico has fallen off steeply in recent years. According to a Pew Hispanic Center analysis of Mexican government data, the number of Mexicans annually leaving Mexico for the U.S. declined from more than one million in 2006 to 404,000 in 2010-a 60% reduction. This is likely a result of recent developments in both the U.S. and Mexico. On the U.S. side, declining job opportunities and increased border enforcement may have made the U.S. less attractive to potential Mexican immigrants. And in Mexico, recent strong economic growth may have reduced the "push" factors that often lead Mexicans to emigrate to the U.S.

As a result, there were fewer new immigrant arrivals to the U.S. from Mexico in the 2000s (4.2 million) than in the 1990s (4.7 million). However, the Mexican-American population continued to grow rapidly, with births accounting for 63% of the 11.2 million increase from 2000 to 2010.[1]

At 31.8 million in 2010, Mexican-Americans comprise 63% of the U.S. Hispanic population and 10% of the total U.S. population. According to Pew Hispanic Center tabulations from the March 2010 U.S. Current Population Survey, 39% of Mexican-Americans-or 12.4 million-are immigrants. With the exception of Russia, no other country in the world has as many immigrants from all countries as the U.S. has from Mexico alone. Nor does any country in the world have as many citizens living abroad as does Mexico. According to the World Bank, more than 10% of Mexico's native-born population lives elsewhere, with the vast majority (97%) of these expatriates living in the United States. 

[1] The 11.2 million increase reflects the net change in births, deaths and net migration of the Mexican-American population in the U.S. between 2000 and 2010.

Complete Report

Nicolás Kanellos: Latinos Transforming U.S. society

Latinos have opportunity to transform U.S. society (Houston Chronicle, 3.3.09) is an important and insightful article by Dr. Nicolás Kanellos, director of Arte Público Press of the University of Houston and contributor to the new book Latinos and the Nation’s Future. It's a must read for anyone interested in the evolution of the U.S. Latino population and U.S.-Latinoamerican relations.

Here's an abstract:

"Just look at U.S. Census projections based on Latinos already in this country and it becomes clear that it’s time to accept the premise of inevitable and monumental Latino population growth. What exactly this means for the future of the country is still uncertain. But here’s one guarantee: The United States’ ballooning Latino growth will have significant implications for practically all segments of social and economic life in the United States. . . . The growing economic integration of the Americas will lead to cultural integration as well: The history, culture and civilization of Hispanics will increasingly be seen as part of the national American culture, one shared by all."

However, the growth and influence of Latinos is disturbing to racists, thus any discussion on this theme is harshly combated and even censored. Is this the article is gone yet vile Anti-Latino comments remain on the paper's online edition?

Gratefully, you can find the article here on Dr. Angela Valenzuela's blog, Immigration, Education and Globalization: U.S.-Mx.

Related: Latinos and the Nation's Future

A Blue Texas? Latinos Will Decide

As Latinos tilt Democratic, can Texas stay ‘red’?

That's the question Michael B. Farrell examines in his terrific article in today's Christian Science Monitor. While he doesn't give an answer, he lays out some of the political and demographic trends shaping the outcome. For example:

• Texas' major cities are now controlled by Democrats
• Texas recently joined California, New Mexico and Hawaii as a minority majority state
• Texas Latinos comprise 36% of the population (eclipsing the Anglo pop. by 2020)
• Texas in-migration of Anglos are typically younger, more urban and more progressive than are native Anglo Texans
• Nationally, younger Latinos backed Obama 76% to 19% for McCain
• Texas Anglos is an aging demographic (e.g., 70% of people older than 60 in Harris County/Houston are Anglo, while more than 75% of people younger than 30 are non-Anglo)

Of course, changes in demographics alone will not decide the fate of a political party. After all, immigrant groups have been known to migrate politically as they solidified their middle class status, and the same thing could happen with Latinos and other populations in Texas. It is, in part, how President G. W. Bush managed to get 46% of the Texas Latino vote in '04.

And there's always the possibility -- slim as it may be -- of the party exorcising itself and transforming into a competent, humane and forward thinking option more in-sync with peoples' aspirations instead of their fears.

But actions and words matter. And Republicans of late have been hell bent on scapegoating all of the nation's problems on immigrants -- Latino immigrants in particular. Some of their leading nativist propagandists--Lou Dobbs, Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter, Tom Tancredo, Patrick Buchanan, Michael Savage, and many others--view Latinos in general as a threat.

As a result, Republicans have been steadily losing Latino support. According to Pew, Latino support for the GOP dropped 9% between '04 and '08.

Further dimming their prospects are Republican views on the environment, women's rights, gay rights, labor rights, foreign policy and economics. Harsh conservative views trouble today's younger voters of all stripes -- across the nation as well as in Texas.

Imagine a Texas-less Republican Party. Hard to imagine, right? But nevertheless, likely. Had Texas flipped this year, McCain would have lost by 399 to 137 EVs instead of 365 to 171 trouncing he received. If Texas flips in 2012 or 2016, the damage to the GOP will be even greater if, as expected, 1 or 2 electoral votes are added to its total as per reapportionment.

Barring a catastrophic failure on the part of President Barack Obama and the national Democrats, it's hard to see a scenario whereby Republicans stop Texas from going Blue. They have blown it! Nativism, warmongering and economic incompetence are just not selling points for people looking for brighter futures.

Related: Changing Face of Texas: Population Projections and Implications

Hudson Valley Latinos: Franky Perez

The Poughkeepsie Journal's series, What life is like for valley Hispanics, gives its Hudson Valley readers a glimpse into the region's expanding Latino community.

This week they feature a piece on Franky Perez, 40, a guidance counselor in the local high school whose of Dominican heritage.

Very nice.

Poughkeepsie High School guidance counselor Franky Perez was born in Brooklyn to parents who had emigrated from the Dominican Republic and never spoke English at home while he was growing up.

Perez, 40, is the youngest of nine children - the only one not born in the Dominican Republic - and is married to a woman of Irish descent. Like two of his siblings, he attended college. However, he is the only one in his family to receive a master's degree. Actually, he has two of them.

Perez, of New Paltz, maintains strong connections to his heritage.

"Knowing that my parents were immigrants, knowing that they came here for a better life, it helped in shaping me," he said. "I needed to do the best I could in school and make sure I was getting ready for my life in America, understanding what my parents had come from."

More

Related: What life is like for Hudson Valley Hispanics: Francisco Del Moral and Reyna Garcia, store owners
Latinos' local presence expanding

New Hues for the Electoral Map: The 10 States of American Politics 2008

Dividing the U.S. into Red and Blue states or, more traditionally, into geographic regions (South, Northeast, Midwest and West) capture the country's true political differences?

Robert David Sullivan of Beyond Red & Blue doesn't think so.

In Beyond Red and Blue: The 10 States of American Politics 2008, Sullivan presents an alternative model in which the nation's counties are assigned to 10 distinct states based on their history and presidential voting patterns since 1948.

The 10 States include: Upper Coasts, Chippewa, Northeast Corridor, South Coast, Cumberland, Southern Inland, Comanche, Mega-Chicago, El Norte and Frontier.

According to Sullivan's research, no one has been elected president without carrying at least five of these "states". So how do today's candidates fare in their quest to capture a majority?

As per recent polls, Sullivan sees Obama's situation quite favorably:

This year Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee, seems to be focused on three goals: increase John Kerry’s narrow 2004 margin in the Latino-heavy region of El Norte (with the goal of winning Colorado and New Mexico and becoming competitive in Florida); erase the Republican Party’s customary solid lead in South Coast (winning Virginia and possibly North Carolina, plus going over the top in Florida); and reduce the Democrats’ often-huge deficit in Cumberland (allowing Obama to take Ohio and possibly Indiana).

In contrast, John McCain's path appears more daunting, which is why he and Palin are spending so much time in Ohio and Pennsylvania:

John McCain, has only one viable strategy to counteract any Electoral College gains by Obama. He must capture Chippewa, which narrowly went for Kerry last time, to have a chance of winning the electoral votes of Michigan, Pennsylvania and possibly Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Link:
New Hues for the Electoral Map
The 10 Regions of Democratic primary politics
America's 10 political regions redefined

Children of immigrants reshaping America: Booming ‘second generation’ becoming the mainstream

By as early as 2023, more than half of all children will be members of what are now minority groups, an evolution fueled significantly by a baby boom among recent immigrants. By 2050, they will make up more than 60 percent of all American children.

By 2050, the number of Americans of [Latino heritage] will double to comprise a third of the American population. The Asian population is projected to nearly triple, to 9.2 percent of the population. And as those populations mingle, the number of people who identify themselves as being of two or more races will more than triple.

The result will be a United States in which the so-called white majority will, for the first time, be in the minority.

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U.S. Latinos by the Numbers '08

U.S. Census Bureau issues Facts for Features in observance of Hispanic Heritage Month 2008: Sept. 15 - Oct. 15

49.4 million
The estimated U.S. Latino population (including the 3.9 million residents of Puerto Rico).

About 1. . .
of every two people added to the nation’s population between July 1, 2006, and July 1, 2007, was Latino. There were 1.4 million Latinos added to the population during the period.

3.3%
Percentage increase in the Latino population between July 1, 2006, and July 1, 2007, making Latinos the fastest-growing "minority" group.

132.8 million
The projected Latino population of the United States on July 1, 2050. According to this projection, Latinos will constitute 30 percent of the nation’s population by that date.

22.4 million
The nation’s Latino population during the 1990 Census — less than half the current total.

3rd
Ranking of the size of the U.S. Latino population worldwide, as of 2007. Only Brazil (184 million) and Mexico (108.7 million) had larger Latino populations than did the United States (45.5 million).

64%
The percentage of Latin American-origin people in the United States who are of Mexican background. Another 9 percent are of Puerto Rican background, with 3.4 percent Cuban, 3.1 percent Salvadoran and 2.8 percent Dominican. The remainder are of some other Central American, South American or other Latino origin.

About 50 percent of the nation’s Dominicans live in New York City and about half of the nation’s and about half of the nation’s Cubans in Miami-Dade County, Fla.

27.6 years
Median age of the Latino population in 2007. This compares with 36.6 years for the population as a whole.

107
Number of Latinos in 2007 per every 100 Latinas. This was in sharp contrast to the overall population, which had 97 males per every 100 females.

States and Counties

48%
The percentage of the Latino/Hispanic-origin population that lives in California or Texas. California is home to 13.2 million Latinos, and Texas is home to 8.6 million.

16
The number of states with at least a half-million Latino-Hispanic residents. They are Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

44%
The percentage of New Mexico’s population that is Latino/Hispanic, the highest of any state. Latinos/Hispanics also make up more than a quarter of the population in California and Texas, at 36 percent each, Arizona (30 percent) and Nevada (25 percent).

4.7 million
The Latino population of Los Angeles County, Calif., in 2007 — the largest of any county in the nation. Maricopa County, Ariz. (home of Phoenix) had the biggest numerical increase in the Latino population (60,700) since July 2006.

97%
Proportion of the population of Starr County, Texas, that was Latino as of 2007, which led the nation. In fact, each of the top 10 counties in this category was in Texas.

308,000
The increase in Texas’ Latino population between July 1, 2006, and July 1, 2007, which led all states. California (268,000) and Florida (131,000) also recorded large increases.

20
Number of states in which Latinos are the largest "minority" group. These states are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Businesses

1.6 million
The number of Latino-owned businesses in 2002.

Triple
The rate of growth of Latino-owned businesses between 1997 and 2002 (31 percent) compared with the national average (10 percent) for all businesses.

$222 billion
Revenue generated byLatino-owned businesses in 2002, up 19 percent from 1997.

44.6%
. . . of all Latino-owned firms were owned by Mexicans, Mexican-Americans and Chicanos.

29,168
Number of Latino-owned firms with receipts of $1 million or more. Counties with the highest number of Latino-owned firms were Los Angeles County (188,422); Miami-Dade County (163,187); and Harris County, Texas (61,934).

Families and Children

9.9 million
The number of Latino family households in the United States in 2006. Of these households, 62 percent included children younger than 18.

67%
The percentage of Latino family households consisting of a married couple.

44%
The percentage of Latino family households consisting of a married couple with children younger than 18.

66%
Percentage of Latino children living with two married parents.

24%
Percentage of total population younger than 5 that was Latino as of July 1, 2007.

Spanish Language

34 million
The number of U.S. residents 5 and older who speak Spanish at home. Spanish speakers constitute 12 percent of U.S. residents.

29%
Percentage of Texas residents 5 and older who speak Spanish at home, which leads all states. This compares with the national average of 12 percent.

78%
Percentage of Latinos 5 and older who speak Spanish at home.

Income, Poverty and Health Insurance

$38,679
The median income of Latino households in 2007, statistically unchanged from the previous year after adjusting for inflation.

21.5%
The poverty rate among Latinos in 2007, up from 20.6 percent in 2006.

32.1%
The percentage of Latinos who lacked health insurance in 2007, down from 34.1 percent in 2006.

Education

60%
The percentage of Latinos 25 and older who had at least a high school education in 2007.

13%
The percentage of the Latino population 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2007.

3.3 million
The number of Latinos 18 and older who had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2007, up from 1.7 million a decade earlier.

811,000
Number of Latinos 25 and older with advanced degrees in 2007 (e.g., master’s, professional, doctorate).

11%
Percentage of all college students in October 2006 who were Latino. Among elementary and high school students combined, the corresponding proportion was 19 percent.

Jobs

68%
Percentage of Latinos 16 and older who are in the civilian labor force.

17%
The percentage of Latinos 16 or older who work in management, professional and related occupations.

82,500
Number of Latino chief executives. In addition, 46,200 physicians and surgeons; 53,600 postsecondary teachers; 43,000 lawyers; and 5,700 news analysts, reporters and correspondents are Latino.

Voting

7.6 million
The number of Latino citizens who reported voting in the 2004 presidential election.

5.6 million
The number of Latino citizens who reported voting in the 2006 congressional elections. The percentage of Latino citizens voting — about 32 percent — did not change statistically from four years earlier.

Serving our Country

1.1 million
The number of Latinos veterans of the U.S. armed forces.

U.S. "Minority" Population Surpasses 100MM

Update: See Denise Oliver's "Minorities" now the Majority in key States in the US in which she calls DKos progressives to paint Texas and Florida, Arizona, Mississippi and Nevada blue by 2012. It's a great goal. She also questions the labeling of Americans of color as "minorities" .

According to its latest population projections, the so-called "minority" population in the United States reached 102,529,590 as of July 2007 -- a 2.4% increase from the year before. That's fully one-third (34%) of the total U.S. population of 301.6 million (exclusive of the populations of U.S. territories).

The U.S. population included 45.5 million Latinos (excluding the 4MM residents of Puerto Rico), or 15.1% of the total population; 40.7 million African Americans (13.5%); 15.2 million Asian Americans (5.0%); 4.5 million Native Americans (1.5%); and 1 million Pacific Islanders.

California (20.9 million) and Texas (12.5 million) alone accounted for 32% of all the U.S. minority population.

Hawaii (75.3%), California (57.3%), Texas (52.1%) and New Mexico (57.7), plus the District of Columbia (67.5%), are now majority minority states.

Additionally, minorities comprised 31-42% of the population in sixteen (16) other states.

States with the fatest growing minority populations were Utah (6.1%), Idaho (5.9), Nevada (5.7%), Wyoming (4.9%), Arizona (4.7%) and Oregon (4.2%).

States with the slowest minority growth rates were the District of Columbia (-0.8%), Michigan (0.4%), Hawaii (0.5%), New York (0.9%) and Ohio (1.1%).

Below is the percentage of the minority population for all 50 states.

60%+
_________________________
75.3 Hawaii
67.5 District of Columbia

50-59.9%
_________________________
57.7 New Mexico
57.3 California
52.1 Texas

40-49.9%
_________________________
42.0 Nevada
41.9 Maryland
41.5 Georgia
41.1 Mississippi
40.9 Arizona

30-39.9%
_________________________
39.7 New York
39.2 Florida
37.8 New Jersey
37.7 Louisiana
35.0 Illinois
34.7 South Carolina
34.0 Alabama
33.9 Alaska
32.7 Virginia
32.5 North Carolina
31.3 Delaware
20-29.9%
_________________________
28.7 Colorado
28.2 Oklahoma
25.6 Connecticut
24.0 Arkansas
23.9 Washington
22.8 Tennessee
22.4 Michigan
20.7 Rhode Island
20.3 Massachusetts

10-19.9%
_________________________
19.5 Oregon
19.3 Kansas
18.2 Pennsylvania
17.7 Missouri
17.7 Utah
17.3 Ohio
16.5 Indiana
15.5 Nebraska
14.6 Wisconsin
14.4 Idaho
14.3 Minnesota
13.6 South Dakota
12.7 Wyoming
12.0 Kentucky
11.8 Montana
10.1 North Dakota

under 9.9%
_________________________
9.4 Iowa
6.6 New Hampshire
6.4 West Virginia
4.7 Vermont
4.5 Maine

127MM U.S. Latinos by 2050

The Pew Research Center issued population projections today showing that the U.S. population will reach 438 million by 2050 given current fertility, longevity and immigration trends. Of that population, 127 million, or 1 of 3 Americans will be persons of Latino heritage.

Additionally, the percentage of nonLatino Whites dips below 50% to a projected 47% of the population. People of color will comprise a majority. By comparison, White nonLatinos were 85% of the population as recently as 1960.

My view is that these demographic trends are the result of the Americanization of the United States and Canada. The restrictionists have been doing all they can to slow the process down through anti-immigrant pogroms, Berlin-type walls, black boot scare tactics, anti-Latino harassments, and illegal anti-immigrant worker municipal codes. However, the population trends are natural and irreversible.

Ted Kennedy: 'I feel change in the air'

Alert: See video of Senator Ted Kennedy's endorsement of Barack Obama.

It was as close as it gets to a coronation. In front of a rapturous, chanting crowd, Ted Kennedy today enfolded Barack Obama into a hug, and in that instant drew a clear line of succession from the Democratic heroes of the past to a younger generation.

Now it was official: Obama was the rightful political heir to John F Kennedy as designated by his brother, Ted, his daughter, Caroline, and his nephew, Patrick.

"I feel change in the air," Ted Kennedy roared, and the crowd roared with him.

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Latinos: Next Great Source of Intellectual Capital

In 2008, Baby Boomers will begin retiring at a rate of 11,000 per day, draining corporate America of their years of talent and experience. To remain competitive, companies should be poised to search for new talent and a good place to start is in the Latino community, one of the fastest growing U.S. demographics and the next great source of intellectual capital, according to Robert Rodriguez, Ph.D., a human resources expert and Assistant Dean in Kaplan University’s Graduate School of Management.

“By the year 2050, Latinos will make up one quarter of the U.S. population and will undoubtedly change the marketplace and our economy,” Dr. Rodriguez says. “Companies need to realize the benefits of attracting more Latino employees and their potential to drive economic growth.”

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A Third of Hall County (GA) Students Latino

Dominating the student population in Gainesville city schools, Latinos are also quickly becoming the predominant group in Hall County schools as well. October enrollment numbers released by the Georgia Department of Education show that Latinos now make up nearly 34% of Hall's overall enrollment of 25,585 students.

Hall County is situated 35 miles Northeast of Atlanta. The Hall area was Cherokee and Creek land until their forced removal in 1838 in The Trail of Tears.

As is the case in many other communities with fast growing Latino populations, there are no Latinos serving on either the Gainsville Board of Education or the Hall Board of Commissioners.

Related:

Hispanics now one-third of Hall students
For the Love of Immigrants
Latino Grits
Latino housekeepers in Savannah arrested for taking the garbage
The ‘New South’ -- an Immigrant-Friendly Place
Southern States -- Immigration's New Battlefield

Latino Surnames Break into U.S. Top 10

Step aside Moore and Taylor. Welcome Garcia and Rodriguez.

Smith remains the most common surname in the United States, according to a new analysis released yesterday by the Census Bureau. But for the first time, two Hispanic surnames — Garcia and Rodriguez — are among the top 10 most common in the nation, and Martinez nearly edged out Wilson for 10th place.

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U.S. Latinos by the Numbers

48.2 million: U.S. Latino population (includes residents of Puerto Rico).

15%: Part of the U.S. population that's Latino.

1 of 2: One of every two people added to the nation’s population between July 1, 2005, and July 1, 2006, was Latino. There were 1.4 million Latinos added to the population over the period.

3.4%: Percentage increase in the Latino population between July 1, 2005, and July 1, 2006, making it the fastest-growing minority group.

102.6 million: The projected Latino population of the U.S. as of July 1, 2050. A quarter of all U.S. residents will be Latino.

3rd: Ranking of the size of the U.S. Latino population worldwide. Only Brazil (183 million) and Mexico (109 million) have larger Latino populations than does the United States (48.2 million). Colombia is 4th with 44 million.

58%: The percentage of Latinos who are of Mexican background. Another 16.6 percent are of Puerto Rican background, with 3.2 percent Cuban, 2.7 percent Salvadoran and 2.4 percent Dominican. The remainder are other Central and South American.

27.4 years: Median age of the Latino population in 2006 (vs 36.4 years for the general population).

45%: The percentage of the Latino population that lives in California or Texas. California is home to 13.1 million Latinos, and Texas is home to 8.4 million.

15: The number of states with at least a half million Latino residents, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington.

44%: The percentage of New Mexico’s population that is Latino, the highest of any state. Latinos also make up more than a quarter of the population in California and Texas, at 36 percent each, and Arizona (29 percent).

4.7 million: The Latino population of Los Angeles County, Calif. — the largest of any county in the nation.

305,000: The increase in Texas’ Latino population between July 1, 2005, and July 1, 2006, which led all states. California (283,000), Florida (161,000) and Arizona (102,000) also recorded large increases.

22: Number of states in which Latinos are the largest minority group, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming.

1.6 million: The number of Latino-owned businesses in 2002.

Triple: The rate of growth of Latino-owned businesses between 1997 and 2002 (31 percent) compared with the national average (10 percent) for all businesses.

$222 billion: Revenue generated by Latino-owned businesses in 2002, up 19 percent from
1997.

29,168: Number of Latino-owned firms with receipts of $1 million or more.

23%: Percentage of total population younger than 5 that was Latino as of July 1, 2006.

$35,967: The median income of Latino households in 2005.

21.8%: The poverty rate among Latinos in 2005.

59%: The percentage of Latinos 25 and older who had at least a high school education in 2006.

12%: The percentage of the Latino population 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2006.

3.1 million: The number of Latinos 18 and older who had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2006, up from 1.4 million a decade earlier.

68%: Percentage of Latinos 16 and older who are in the civilian labor force.

17%: The percentage of Latinos 16 or older who work in management, professional and related occupations.

77,700: Number of Latino chief executives. In addition, 49,200 physicians and surgeons; 53,700 teachers; 29,000 lawyers; and 3,300 news analysts, reporters and correspondents are Latino.

7.6 million: The number of Latino citizens who reported voting in the 2004 presidential election.

1.1 million: The number of Latino veterans of the U.S. armed forces.

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau

Latinas Having Babies: Thalía, JLo, et al

People En Espanol reports that Mexican-born Thalía Sodi, 35, gave birth Sunday to a little girl who will be called Sabrina Sakaë.

Mama y bebé are resting on their ranch in Colorado.

Today, Us Magazine reports that Jennifer Lopez is expecting twins--although the Lopez-Anthony camp has yet to make it official. However, the Nuyorican couple is busy preparing their Long Island estate for the arrival of their matching bundles of joy.

Congratulations to all--and welcome to the family, Sabrina.

While these growing families may be OK with the likes of Nancy MacDonald, Pat Buchanan, and other rightwingers, they are still part of the larger Latino population surge they so despise.

That is, aside from their wealth and visibility, Thalía, JLo and Marc are reflective of the nation's young and fertile Latino population. While it seems a mystery to MacDonald and Buchanan, Latinos are building families because that's what young people in their prime do.

It's a human thing.

It's also a primary contributor to the U.S. Latino population surge which is giving so many old-timers and racists seizures.

The bottomline? It may be a harsh biological and demographic fact, but Thalía, JLo and Marc are members of a people in their prime; while MacDonald and Buchanan are literally and figuratively members of a quickly fading lot.

BTW: You can't turn back the clock.

Related:
The Right's Attack On Latino Parents
Jenny Responds to Heather Mac Donald's Screech Against Latinas

New Orleans' Latino Boom

In case you missed it, PEOPLE published an interesting article (A Hispanic Renaissance in New Orleans) on the Latino transformation of New Orleans in its August 2007 issue.

In the aftermath of Katrina thousands of Hispanics arrived in this devastated city to pick up the pieces and help rebuild it. Two years later, their newborn babies–and many more to come–are changing the city to its core.

Here are the numbers:

According to the 2005 U.S. Census, before the storm there were 50,099 Hispanics in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes.

Martín Gutiérrez, executive director of the Archdiocese of New Orlean’s Hispanic Apostolate, estimates that the number of Hispanics now living in the area is between 120,000 and 150,000.

Marbella (in the photo) is just one of New Orleans' newest residents. Appropriately, her name means Beautiful Sea in Spanish.

Beautiful!

Latino Surge in Orange County (NY)

Yes, the Latinization of America continues.

This time the focus is on Orange County in New York.

Yes, the Orange County of American Chopper and West Point fame.

Perennially rated as one of America's most attractive places to live, Orange County is bordered to the North by the Catskills, the Hudson River to the East, New York's Rockland County to the South East, New Jersey's rural Sussex County to the South, and rural Northeastern Pennsylvania to the West.

The latest population estimates by the Census Bureau show that the Orange County (NY) Latino population surged to around 15.4% (58,000) of the county's 376,000 residents--an increase from 11.6% in 2000.

"You have a lot of Hispanics that are coming here from New York City, Westchester and New Jersey, not unlike other groups," said [Jose] DeJesus, a native of Puerto Rico whose family moved to Walden from Yonkers in 1992.

"They're looking for good communities, they're looking for good places for their children."

Read Orange County attracts minorities: Hispanic surge leads the way, Times Herald-Record - 8.17.07.

Related: Raise voices for Newburgh campus of SUNY Orange - Times Herald-Record/Letter to the Editor by Sonia Ayala/Jose Dejesus - 6.18.06

Latinos in the 38 Largest Counties

The county with the largest number of Latinos is Los Angeles County, California with 4,706,994, or almost half of all Angelenos. Houston's Harris County is second with 1,200,957, or 38% of that county's total. Although New York City's five county aggregate of 2,251,673 Latinos, or 28% of the total population, would rank it 2nd behind only Los Angeles County.

The following is the number of Latinos and their percentage of the total population for each of the nation's 38 largest counties:

1) Los Angeles County, CA - 4,706,994 (47%)
[New York City - Bronx, New York, Kings, Queens and Richmond counties- 2,251,673 (28%)]
2) Harris County, TX - 1,484,311 (38%)
3) Miami-Dade County, FL - 1,471,709 (61%)
4) Cook County, IL - 1,200,957 (23%)
5) Maricopa County, AZ - 1,129,556 (30%)
6) Orange County, CA - 987,428 (30%)
7) San Bernardino County, CA - 918,706 (46%)
8) Bexar County, TX - 889,658 (58%)
9) San Diego County, CA - 885,504 (30%)
10) Riverside County, CA - 855,408 (42%)
11) Dallas County, TX - 884,561 (38%)
12) Bronx County, NY - 693,884 (51%)
13) Queens County, NY - 597,773 (27%)
14) Kings County, NY - 496,304 (20%)
15) Clark County, NV - 482,899 (27%)
16) Santa Clara County, CA - 445,481 (26%)
17) Tarrant County, TX - 414,598 (25%)
18) New York County, NY - 408,712 (25%)
19) Broward County, FL - 408,335 (23%)
20) Alameda County, CA - 312,426 (22%)
21) Sacramento County, CA - 265,550 (20%)
22) Hillsborough County, FL - 255,370 (22%)
23) Orange County, FL - 253,129 (24%)
24) Contra Costa County, CA - 224,134 (22%)
25) Palm Beach County, FL - 213,262 (17%)
26) Suffolk County, NY - 191,552 (13%)
27) Nassau County, NY - 160,017 (12%)
28) Philadelphia County, PA - 151,570 (11%)
29) King County, WA - 131,277 (7%)
30) Fairfax County, VA - 130,753 (13%)
31) Wayne County, MI - 93,405 (5%)
32) Middlesex County, MA - 76,934 (5%)
33) Hennepin County, MN - 66,221 (6%)
34) Cuyahoga County, OH - 50,354 (4%)
35) Franklin County, OH - 38,357 (4%)
36) Oakland County, MI - 35,930 (3%)
37) St. Louis County, MO - 19,364 (2%)
38) Allegheny County, PA - 15,092 (1%)