Hispanics in America

Source: The Economist, 14 March 2015

Link: Special Report: America’s Hispanics

Summary: A large and growing Hispanic population in the United States has a net positive effect.

Statistics:

• The Hispanic population in the US is about 57 million, estimated to reach 106 million in 2050.
• They make up about 18% of the population.
• 34 million are from Mexico.
• The median age of Hispanics is 28, compared to 42 for whites and 32 for blacks.
• Median wealth for Hispanic households is $7,683, compared to $110,500 for whites.
• One in four students in public schools is Hispanic.
• One in six Spanish-speaking immigrants is undocumented. 93% of the children were born in the US.
• In the 2012 elections, less than half of the 23 million eligible Hispanic voters turned out. 27% voted for Mitt Romney.
• About 17% of Hispanic adults are evangelical Protestants. About the same percent claims no religion.
• “Net migration from Mexico has been at or near zero since 2010 after years of large inflows.”
• “The National Gang Intelligence Centre (NGIC) estimated the number of gangs in America in 2011 as 33,000, with a total of 1.4 million members. It is thought that close to half of them are Hispanics.”
• Teen birth rate among Hispanics is 20% (and dropping), compared to 9% for whiles and 17% for blacks.
• The National Assessment of Educational Progress “found less than a quarter of young Hispanics proficient in 8th grade reading or mathematics, compared with around half of all whites and Asians.”
• Between 2000 and 2010, about 7 million Mexican Americans were born in the US, as compared to about 4 million who immigrated.
• By the second generation, nearly 100% of Hispanic immigrants have English proficiency.