WASHINGTON - 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.
Hispanics are the nation's largest and fastest-growing minority group. They accounted for 49 percent of the country's growth from 2004 to 2005, the report shows. And the increase in young children is largely a Hispanic story, driving 70 percent of the growth in children younger than 5. Forty-five percent of U.S. children younger than 5 are minorities.
The new numbers offer a preview of demographic shifts to come, with broad implications for the nation's schools, workforce and Social Security.
One in three Americans is now a member of a minority group, a share that is bound to rise, because the non-Hispanic white population is older and growing much more slowly. The country already is engaged in a national debate about how government should respond to growing immigration, legal and illegal.
Glimpse into the future
In some parts of the country, the transformation is more visible than in others. Large swaths of the upper Midwest are still mainly non-Hispanic white. But minorities are a majority of children younger than 5 in the Washington area, according to previously released census numbers. That is also true in Miami, Houston, Los Angeles and other high-immigration regions.
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."
• More national coverage[B]
There could be increased competition for money and power, he added: "The older, predominantly white baby-boom generations will need to accommodate younger, multiethnic young adults and child populations in civic life, political decisions and sharing of government resources" in places such as the Washington suburbs.
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.
Emphasis on early education
Experts say immigrant families are becoming more concerned with the quality of their children's early education, aware that it can affect their future academic success. That is one reason there is a waiting list at the Child and Family Network Centers, a preschool in Alexandria.
The centers, which also operate a preschool in Arlington, provide free and subsidized preschools for about 200 children from low-income families. They serve many immigrants, including those who don't qualify for other programs. The waiting list is 150 children long. Eight out 10 speak English as a second language, and 70 percent are Latino.
"Oh, here's the chrysalis," said teacher Maria Cruz, pointing to a picture in a book as 4- and 5-year-olds crowded around her for story time yesterday. "Every day, the chrysalis looks the same -- we can't see anything happening, but inside, something is happening."
Emely Lopez, 5, raised her hand and pointed to a real butterfly cocoon in a container by the window. "Hay una alli" -- there's one there -- she said in Spanish, pointing at it. Cruz nodded encouragingly.
"Yes," she replied in English, "it's the same thing we have happening here."
In the next room, bilingual signs displayed the English and Spanish words for "computer," "rest time" and "snack." Across the hall, a group of children sang a song in Spanish.
Cruz said she has seen a huge difference in children's abilities from when they start the program and when they move on to kindergarten. She pointed at a 5-year-old girl from Mexico who was prattling about butterflies in English: Last year, Cruz said, "she came with zero English -- zero."
[B]No end to trend in sight
William O'Hare, a senior fellow at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said he is not sure the country is prepared to provide the extra help that immigrants' children often need to become well-educated workers and the future supporters of retirement programs for a predominantly white elderly population. Some Americans, he said, will not welcome the news that minorities are nearly the majority among young children.
"Part of the people will see this and say, 'Gee, these kids are really our future parents and workers, and we need to take care of them,' " O'Hare said. "The other would say it is time to send them all home."
The census figures show that the number of Hispanic and Asian children younger than 5 grew by double-digit percentages since 2000. The number of black children grew more slowly. The number of non-Hispanic white children younger than 5 declined for two years this decade before increasing again.
The nation's Asian population growth still is dominated by immigration, the census report shows, but among Hispanics, births added more to the population growth than immigrants did this decade.
That means the growth trend among the youngest Hispanics "is only going to accelerate under almost any scenario you can think about, even without immigration," said demographer Jeffrey S. Passel of the Pew Hispanic Center. "As the children age, they are the ones who in 20 years will be having children."
You must turn on, tune in and drop out.
Timothy Leary
I reserve the right to be ignorant. That's the Western way of life. The Spy who came in from the cold
Mama always said life was like a box a chocolates, never know what you're gonna get.
Minorities = filthy children?
I think anyone would be horrified by the thought of you supporting a child. I am sure they do not expect you to support a child and that you should not be in the same city with a child. I doubt that anyone has any expectations of you.
Ok forget I ever said anything about it. What do you think of the article itself?
When I typed that reply I was angry at something else. Who knows why I typed it. I am sorry if it offended you or anything. You can delete it if you would like.
You must turn on, tune in and drop out.
Timothy Leary
I reserve the right to be ignorant. That's the Western way of life. The Spy who came in from the cold
Mama always said life was like a box a chocolates, never know what you're gonna get.
Personally, I have a problem with people who come here, ILLEGALLY. I don't care WHAT country they are from. I don't want to have to support them, or their children. So, in a sense, I understand where you're coming from Hazel.
:::>^..^<::: ~*~The Journey is more important than the end or the start~*~ :::>^..^<:::
Okay, now I can understand a person's dismay over illegal immigrants, but this article is clearly talking about minorities, not just illegal immigrants. There is a huge difference, and although you have recanted your "filthy children" statement, which I commend you for, I still cannot tell whether you dislike illegal Hispanic immigrants, or just Hispanics in general. I have never met a child whom I considered anything less than beautiful, nor have I met a minority who wasn't as filthy as some of my fellow Caucasians.
I could be wrong. God knows, I'm wrong about a lot of things, apparently, but I somehow thought we were living in the 21st century. So, if we have to walk on eggshells to not upset some social and lifestyle minorities, why should someone else's nationality or skin color fall under different human rights guidelines because their presence pisses off the almighty Caucasian?
I agree, whole-heartedly, with you. There are too many people that judge, or dislike, based on the way a person looks (whether it be a skin color, weight, height, sex, dress, etc...) and I swear that we ALL in this world, need to GROW UP and stop judging people for these reasons.
We shouldn't have to walk on social eggshells... we should be able to speak... but, be respectful as well.
For me, I just want to have people here legally... nothing more, nothing less.
:::>^..^<::: ~*~The Journey is more important than the end or the start~*~ :::>^..^<:::
One thing: If minorities are breeding like rabbits....how come they are still called minorities? What is happening to the progeny of these minorities if that is the case? Rabbits breed like they do because their lifespan is short. So, again, what is happening to these 'illegals,' 'minorities' offspring?
Leads to another: I find it hypocritical, at best, for anyone other than the indigenous natives of North and South America to be upset about 'illegals' 'minorities' living in the USA.
Another: We may as well change the moniker of the Statue of Liberty to:
Bring me your homeless, your indigent, your white trash...but do NOT allow Mexicans into our country.
Another: So where was the outcry when each of our predecessors came from foreign lands? As 2nd generation European ... I still wonder why the majority of white Americans even worry about immigration in the first place...
Because another.... the USA is only a little older than 200 years old...and people are griping about immigration...IMO who cares? I just feel blessed that as a 2nd generation European I live here.
And for the record...I think Bush's plans are reasonable. It isn't amnesty. It is a hand reaching out to poor folk stuck in a wretched life in Mexico who want to better their way of living.
Either tear down the Statue of Liberty and all it stands for or stop griping.
Sure we DO have a right to be upset when people are living here, illegally. Live here, legally, and pay taxes, like we all do. I bust my butt, to make a living. It might not be much... but, I pay taxes... over $1000.00 per month. I have NO choice. But, it goes to help out taking care of my city, and my state, and other things. I have medical insurance, and I pay to see my doctor. I pay for my meds. I don't get things for free.
I don't care who you are, or where you're from. You have the right to be here... but, do it legally. I've wanted to live in other countries... but, because I couldn't get citizenship, I didn't go there, and live, illegally. It just seem like the "right" thing to do. I respect the law.
:::>^..^<::: ~*~The Journey is more important than the end or the start~*~ :::>^..^<:::
I think it is unreasonable for such representatives like our own homegrown representative Tom Tancredo from Littleton to want to make it a felony for being an illegal immigrant.
Again, I think Bush's plan is reasonable...that there be a path to citizenship for those who are here. And I would rather have the national guard in Texas, NM, and CA guarding our borders than in Iraq and Afganistan and other places as 'Peacekeepers' and guardians of foreign lands.
There is no precedent for making illegals felons, and not only is it unreasonable...the very notion of making illegals felons is unlawful in itself.
05-10-2006 02:18 PM
