We all knew it was coming. But so what? According to new census estimates, for the first time, racial and ethnic minorities make up more than half the children born in the United States: Whites Account for Under Half of Births in U.S.
Census Bureau data confirms that non-Hispanic whites accounted for 49.6 percent of all births in the 12-month period that ended in July 2011, while "minorities" -- including Blacks, Latinos, Asians and Native Americans -- reached 50.4 percent, representing a majority for the first time in our country history:
Such a turn has been long expected, but no one was certain when the moment would arrive — signaling a milestone for a nation whose government was founded by white Europeans and has wrestled mightily with issues of race, from the days of slavery, through a civil war, bitter civil rights battles and, most recently, highly charged debates over efforts to restrict immigration.Some folks have been making a pretty big deal out of this news, but I honestly don't see what the fuss is about. It's been a long time coming. And whites still outnumber all other groups, no matter how you break it down.
While over all, whites will remain a majority for some time, the fact that a younger generation is being born in which minorities are the majority has broad implications for the country's economy, its political life and its identity. "This is an important tipping point," said William H. Frey, the senior demographer at the Brookings Institution, describing the shift as a "transformation from a mostly white baby boomer culture to the more globalized multiethnic country that we are becoming."
That said, I'm sure this information was upsetting more than a few folks who have been bemoaning the demise of the U.S. and the deteriorating good old days. You know what I'm talking about.
Deal with it, my fellow Americans. And while we're at it, how about we reconsider use of the term "minority"? Yeah. More here: Census: Minorities now surpass whites in US births.
