The name Hispanic has been branded with more traditional viewpoints, and the term Latino has been linked with more liberal politics. This is partly because Hispanic is an English word meaning “belonging to ancient Spain.” The U.S. census bureau has determined to settle on one term, Hispanic.
The Hispanic population represents the largest minority group in the United States. The 45.5 million Hispanics in the United States in 2007 include 15.1% of the entire population. California (13.2 million) has the largest Hispanic population of any state, followed by Texas (8.6 million) and Florida (3.8 million). It is guessed that Hispanics will represent 30% of the U.S. population by 2050 (Martin 30).
Nearly two-thirds (64%) of the U.S’s Hispanics are of Mexican ancestry. Another 9% are of Puerto Rican social heritage, with 3.4% Cuban, 3.1% Salvadoran, and 2.8% Dominican. The rest are of Central American and South American origin. More than three-fourths of Hispanics reside in the West or South.
The Hispanic populace is more different than it was in the past. U.S. Hispanics of Mexican ancestry – the largest Hispanic group- has been increasing considerably. Another fast increasing group, in percentage terms, is the group of “other” Hispanics. Many of those who select “Other Spanish/ Hispanic / Latino” on the U.S. survey form are immigrants from the Central or South America. “Other” Hispanics also comprise an increasing number of people with multinational backgrounds who do not recognize with a particular country or region of origin.
Hispanics are not a very well understood part of the population. First, no one knows precisely how many Hispanics have crossed the boundary from Mexico as illegal immigrants. Second, many Americans of Hispanic ancestry do not classify themselves as Hispanic on survey forms and are not counted as such.
People born in Latin America can be spotted all across the United States, but most live in only a few areas. The difference is the place of birth. For example, 75% of U.S. residents born in the Caribbean live either in the New York or the Miami metro areas. More than half of those born in Mexico live in the Los Angeles area or in Florida or Texas.
Interestingly, while the immeasurable majority of Hispanics come from rural areas, 90% settle in America’s industrial cities and surrounding suburbs. Living together in closely united communities, they share a common language and customs. However, distinction in the number of racial discrimination Latinos experience depends on the socioeconomic position of immigrant parents and their ethnic form.
Also, those whose parents migrated as high-skilled immigrants do not experience as much discrimination, while those Latinos with darker complexion go through more racial inequity than those who look whiter (white Hispanics experience less favoritism and black Hispanics experience the most) (Martin 57).
Hispanic Americans are to a less extent, generally included in conventional American culture, but because a great number of them are ethnically white, the tribal difficulties to exogamy with whites are less (Martin 56).
Lastly, with the Latin resettlement to the north, the United States has gone through the largest migration in its history. Around one half of Hispanic residents in the United States were born in a foreign country.
Newcomers to the United States started their settlement with many economic and educational drawbacks compared to the average American; more than half have not graduated from high school and most are unskilled. With the low turnout in education among the Hispania’s, the parts of society where they have excessively reach a desired goal are music and sports.
Works Cited
Martin, Marger. Race and Ethnic Relations: American and Global Perspectives. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.