Some linguists may argue it's impossible, but minorities in the United States are slated to become the majority in this country within just a matter of decades. According to an August 14, 2008 report by the U.S. Census Bureau, this significant demographic shift is projected for 2042.
Here are some highlights of the Bureau's projections:
- After passing the 50% mark in 2042, minorities in the U.S. will make up 54% percent of the population in 2050 (up from roughly 33% today).
- Among children, minorities will become the majority as early as 2023 — and rise to 62% in 2050 (up from roughly 44% today).
- Nearly one in three residents will be Hispanic. The Hispanic population will nearly triple to 132.8 million (up from roughly 46.7 million), and its share of the country's population will double to 30% (from 15%).
- The black population will increase to 65.7 million from roughly 41.1 million today, although this represents only a 1% increase (from 14% to 15%) of the country's total population.
- More than 88.5 million residents will be 65 or older (up twofold from the 38.7 million today) and by 2030, when all baby boomers will be at least 65, roughly 20% of all residents will be 65 or older.
Since the Fair Housing Act, not to mention state and local housing discrimination laws, function in large part to protect minorities, what effect will this demographic shift have on the need for such laws? Will there be fewer fair housing complaints and a lower incidence of government enforcement? What will fair housing be like in a world where minorities are the majority?
What do you think?
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