Hispanic growth extends eastward
It seems the eastern states are finally getting a taste of immigration problems the southwestern states have been drowning in for a long time.
Rapidly growing numbers of Hispanics are fanning out across the eastern half of the United States and settling in rural and suburban counties far from traditional immigrant strongholds, according to census numbers released today.
The increases in areas that experienced little diversity until this decade intensify the uproar over immigration. Forty-one states have enacted 171 laws this year aimed at illegal immigrants. About 100 communities have proposed similar ordinances; 40 have been enacted.
?We?re seeing new immigrant minorities coming in to areas that haven?t had very much minority populations or immigrant populations,? says William Frey, demographer at the Brookings Institution. ?It put immigration on the front burner politically. It scared a lot of people.?
The number of Hispanics has soared since 2000 in counties such as Paulding near Atlanta, Kendall on the western edge of Chicago and Stafford, Prince William and Loudoun in Virginia, outside Washington.
The high birthrate among Hispanics accounted for more than half the growth this decade, according to Kenneth Johnson, demographer at University of New Hampshire?s Carsey Institute.
It seems the eastern states are finally getting a taste of immigration problems the southwestern states have been drowning in for a long time.