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NATIONAL
NOT JUST BLACK AND WHITE ANYMORE


Queens, NY

It is no surprise that the Hispanic population is the nation's largest minority group, which was confirmed by the Census Bureau at the beginning of the year. The Hispanic population in the United States is now roughly 37 million, while African American total approximately 36.2 million. These figures, the first detailed findings on race and ethnicity since the 2000 Census released two years ago, confirm what demographers and many advocacy groups have anticipated for several years.

The new numbers are based on new population estimates from July 1, 2001 that were compared with the census figures from April 1, 2000. The figures showed that the Latino population grew by 4.7 percent, while the black population grew by just 1.5 percent. The white, non-Hispanic population, estimated at roughly 196 million, grew by 0.3 percent during the same period.

The overwhelming growth in the Hispanic population results from higher birth rates and from the huge wave of immigration that has taken place in the last decade. The Census Bureau counts all people residing in the United States, whether they are legal immigrants or not.

In addition to their symbolic significance, these findings carry important implications for the distribution of resources. In recent years blacks and Hispanics have often felt opposition in seeking financing and political representation. Now that the numbers are so high in this population one is left to question if the resources are, simply put, enough?


US Senator Charles Schumer

On December 4, 2002, Senator Charles Schumer released a report on the top fifty philanthropic foundations. Among them, the Ford Foundation, the Pew Charitable Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation. These foundation gave only a small fraction of their total grant monies to Latino non-profits in 2000. Moreover, over half of the top fifty US foundations did not give any grants to Latino groups in that year.

In total, the top foundations gave only $45.6 million to Latino non-profits out of the more than $5.7 billion they gave overall in 2000. According to data from the Foundation Center, only 13 of the top 50 philanthropic foundations made grants available to organizations that primarily served the Latino community. While those 13 foundations are commended for their giving, the average percent of total grant money given to Latino non-profits was only 1.3%.

With the numbers reaching unprecedented heights more is needed in the areas of funding, social pograms, and legislation. Latinos have been the overlooked fragment of this society for too long, and allthough tremendous legislative efforts have been made, there is still more to be done.

NACIONAL
YA NOS ES SOLO BLANCO Y NEGRO