Filed under: News
A recently released time-lapse map produced by PolicyLink, a national research agency dedicated to social equity, shows the decade-by-decade browning of America. The so-called Map of America's Tomorrow, shows that by the year 2042 the majority of Americans will be people of color. The map also shows the states and regions that will be most populated by people of color, including blacks, Hispanics/Latinos and Asians.
"This map makes crystal clear just how dramatically the face of America is changing - and how quickly," said Angela Glover Blackwell, the Founder & CEO of PolicyLink. "Already, nearly half of all young people are of color, and by 2040, people of color will become our nation's majority. Clearly, this snapshot of our future has struck a chord, leaving no doubt that we must invest in and start building the foundation of tomorrow's America today. Let's start now."
The "we" that Blackwell is referring to are those who influence policy, such as legislators and policymakers, according to PolicyLink. The group believes that the entire nation must take up the cause of advocacy on behalf of communities of color, particularly for "fair, equitable and targeted investments."
According to the latest U.S. Census data, a growing list of major American cities have seen their native-born black populations declining at an alarming rate - including Detroit, New Orleans and Washington, D.C., and among the biggest losers Oakland and Chicago with losses of 25 percent and 17 percent, respectively - over the past 10 years.
Many upwardly mobile African Americans have moved to the suburbs or to the South. Others still have been forced out of major cities by gentrification. Despite the shifts though, experts and data indicate that the overall number of ethnic minorities, including blacks, will in total comprise the majority of America in the relatively near future.
PolicyLink said until now there has been no visualization of what this future will look like.
To see the methodology behind the PolicyLink map click here.