America: The New New Mexico?

Births have overtaken immigration as the driving force behind the growth of the Mexican-American population in the United States in the past decade, according to a report released Thursday by the Pew Hispanic Center. The same can be said for the entire Hispanic population of the United States, which grew from 35.3 million in 2000 to 50.5 million in 2010, accounting for 16.3% of the U.S. population, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. About 58% of that growth resulted from births rather than the arrival of new immigrants, the report says. The trend is most evident among Mexican-Americans, whose numbers grew by 7.2 million as a result of births and 4.2 million from new immigrant arrivals in the past decade, reversing trends from the previous two decades, when the number of new immigrants matched or exceeded the number of births, the report says. Mexican-Americans are the nation's largest Hispanic group, at around 31.8 million, or 63% of the U.S. Hispanic population and 10% of the total U.S. population. In the Pew report, the term Mexican-American applies to people of Mexican origin, regardless of immigration status. The study noted that in 2010, 52% of people of Mexican origin were in the U.S. illegally, and that 68% of births to undocumented aliens were to Mexican nationals. Hispanic births accounted for 25% of the nation’s newborns in 2008, the report says, citing statistics from the Centers for Disease Control. U.S. births are also disproportionately Mexican-American. While 10% of the nation’s population in 2008 was Mexican-American, 16% of the nation’s births were to Mexican-American mothers. The Hispanic share of the population is projected to rise from 16.3% in 2010 to 29% by the middle of this century, with the bulk of the future increase driven by births rather than the arrival of new immigrants, the report says.
**Ok, so that’s a lot of information to take in. Let’s break it down. Immigration to the U.S. is down 60% in the last decade, but Hispanic births are up…way up. About half of the Mexicans living in the U.S. are here illegally. Mexicans account for 10% of the U.S. population, but account for 16% of new births. The number of Hispanics living in this country is projected to almost double by 2050. By the way, these are U.S. Census and Pew Hispanic Center numbers, so blame them if you think this is racist.

So, what does all this mean?
Immigration is down, but births are up = Hispanics that are already in the U.S. are having a LOT of kids. It’s true. Hispanics have, on average, more children per household than any other racial group.

52% of Mexicans living in the U.S. are here illegally = the U.S. has a HUGE immigration problem. Various factors conspire to keep illegal immigrants who are already in the United States from leaving. Simply put, once you’re here, it’s a lot easier just to stay here.

Mexicans account for a disproportionate number of new births = Again, Mexicans have a LOT of kids. Consider that the number of Hispanics in the U.S. increased by 15 million from 2000 to 2010. For the first time in two decades, the number of births outpaced the number of new immigrants by about 3 million people.

The Hispanic population will nearly double by 2050 = with immigration down, and the number of new births on the rise, Hispanics plan on having a LOT of kids in the next 40 years.

Translation? If you are not already on the Hispanic bandwagon, you’d better strap on your sombrero because nearly a third of the population will be Hispanic by 2050. Like it or not, this is the new America. Like it or not, it is time for non-Hispanics to embrace diversity because – you’re the minority now. If you’re white, there’s always Norway.