In September 1968, Congress authorized President Lyndon Johnson to institute National Hispanic Heritage Week.  The observance was expanded in 1988 to a month-long celebration (Sept. 15 – Oct. 15).

Sept. 15 was chosen as the start of the celebration because it’s the anniversary of independence in five Latin American countries -- Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Additionally, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence on Sept. 16 and Sept. 18, respectively.

The following data on the Hispanic/Latino population is significant as our region celebrates the culture and traditions of its residents who trace their roots to Spain, Mexico and the Spanish-speaking nations of Central America, South America and the Caribbean.

Population

• The estimated Hispanic population of the United States is 42.7 million as of July 1, 2005, making people of Hispanic origin the nation’s largest ethnic or race minority.  Hispanics constitute 14 percent of the nation’s total population.

Population Growth

• About one of every two people added to the nation’s population between July 2004 and July 2005 was Hispanic.
• The Hispanic population grew by 3.3 percent between July 2004 and July 2005, making Hispanics the fastest-growing minority group.
• The projected Hispanic population of the United States as of July 1, 2050 is 102.6 million.  According to this projection, Hispanics will constitute 24 percent of the nation’s total population on that date.
• The nation’s Hispanic population was 22.4 million during the 1990 census – just slightly over half the current total.

Component groups within the Hispanic Population

• The percentage of Hispanic-origin people in households who are of Mexican background is 64 percent.  Another approximately 10 percent are of Puerto Rican background, with about 3 percent each of Cuban, Salvadoran or Dominican origins.  Roughly half of the nation’s Dominicans live in New York City, with about half of the nation’s Cubans residing in Miami-Dade County, Fla.
• Median age (in years) of the Hispanic population in 2005 was 27.2.  This compares with 36.2 years for the population as a whole.
• There were 107 Hispanic males in 2005 per every 100 Hispanic females. This was in sharp contrast to the overall population, which had 97 males per every 100 females.

• 49 percent of the nation’s Hispanic-origin population lives in California or Texas. California is home to 12.4 million Hispanics, and Texas is home to 7.8 million.
• There are 13 states with at least half a million Hispanic residents.  These states are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Texas and Washington.  Michigan’s Hispanic population numbered 375,041.
• Hispanics represent 43 percent of New Mexico’s population, highest of any state. Hispanics also make up more than one-third of the population in California and Texas, at 35 percent each.
• The Hispanic population of Los Angeles County, Calif. is 4.6 million – the largest of any county in the nation.
• Hispanics are the largest race or ethnic minority group in 19 states.  African Americans outnumber Hispanics almost 5-to-1 in Michigan.

• The number of Hispanic-owned businesses numbered 1.6 million in 2002.  The tri-county area was home to 4,542 Hispanic-owned businesses.
• The rate of growth of Hispanic-owned businesses between 1997 and 2002 (31 percent) was triple that of the national average (10 percent) for all businesses.  Hispanic-owned businesses grew by 13 percent in southeast Michigan.
• Hispanic-owned businesses generated revenue of $222 billion in 2002, up 19 percent from 1997. There were 29,184 Hispanic-owned firms with receipts of $1 million or more.
• People of Mexican origin owned 44 percent of all Hispanic-owned firms.
• Nearly 3-in-10 Hispanic-owned firms operated in construction and other services, such as personal services, and repair and maintenance. Retail and wholesale trade accounted for 36 percent of Hispanic-owned business revenue.
• States with the fastest rates of growth for Hispanic-owned firms between 1997 and 2002 included New York (57 percent), Rhode Island and Georgia (56 percent each), and Nevada and South Carolina (48 percent each).
• Counties with the highest number of Hispanic-owned firms were Los Angeles County, Calif. (188,472); Miami-Dade County, Fla. (163,188); Harris County, Texas (61,934); and Bronx County, N.Y. (38,325).

• There are 9.5 million Hispanic families residing in the United States.  Of these families, 63 percent include children under 18 years old. Also,  67 percent of Hispanic families consist of a married couple, and 44 percent consist of a married couple with children under the age of 18.
• 65 percent of Hispanic children are living with two parents. 

• 31 million U.S. residents age 5 and older speak Spanish at home.  Spanish speakers constitute a ratio of more than 1-in-10 U.S. household residents.  Among all those who speak Spanish at home, more than half say they speak English “very well.”

• 53 percent of the nation’s foreign-born population is from Latin America.  This amounts to 18.3 million people. 
• 10 million of the nation’s foreign-born were born in Mexico, by far more than any other Latin American country or any other country in the world for that matter.  Other countries of birth that contribute large numbers of Hispanics are El Salvador (937,000), Cuba (925,000), the Dominican Republic (688,000), Guatemala (590,000) and Colombia (500,000).
• Four states are home to about two of every three foreign-born persons born in Latin America. Those states are California, Florida, New York and Texas.

• The real median income of Hispanic households in 2005 was $35,967, up from $34,241 in 2004.
• The poverty rate among Hispanics in 2005 was 21.8 percent, virtually unchanged from 2004’s rate of 21.9 percent.
• 32.7 percent of Hispanics lacked health insurance in 2005, up slightly from 2004’s rate of 32.3 percent. 

• 58 percent of Hispanics age 25 and older had at least a high school education in 2004, while 12 percent had achieved a bachelor’s degree or higher.
• 2.7 million Hispanics age 18 and older had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2004.
• 714,000 Hispanics 25 years and older had advanced degrees in 2004 (e.g., master’s, professional, doctorate).
• Hispanics represented 11 percent of all college students in October 2004.

• 68 percent of Hispanics 16 and older are in the civilian labor force, with 18 percent working in managerial, professional and related occupations.  Approximately 24 percent of Hispanics work in service occupations, 22 percent in sales and office jobs, 15 percent in construction, extraction and maintenance jobs, and 19 percent in production, transportation and material moving occupations.

• 7.6 million Hispanic citizens reported voting in the 2004 presidential election. The percentage of Hispanic citizens voting – about 47 percent – did not change from four years earlier.

• Hispanic veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces number 1.1 million.

Information and trends shaping our region

The number of Hispanic-owned businesses in southeast Michigan has increased, along with the population.  An analysis of data collected in the Census Bureau’s Survey of Minority-owned Business shows that, with the exception of Macomb County, Hispanic businesses increased in number throughout the region.  By far, the largest increase – 149 percent – occurred in the city of Detroit.

The vast majority of these businesses are single proprietor or family run, with no paid employees.  Such businesses accounted for 809 of the 955 total.  The remaining 146 businesses employed 1,268 individuals.

The Census Bureau conducts this survey every five years (years ending in “2” and “7”).  Results of the 2002 survey were released earlier this year.

Learn More

Additional information about the area's Hispanic population can be found in United Way's report, The Hispanic Community in Metropolitan Detroit. To obtain a copy of this report, please call United Way for Southeastern Michigan at 313-226-9412.