Supplier BulletinApr 24, 2025
Protect Your Customers and Your BusinessSponsored by the Gemological Institute of America
SurveysJul 12, 2018
The U.S. Population Is Becoming More Racially Diverse
The Census Bureau said the population of all race and ethnic groups, except for “non-Hispanic white alone,” grew between July 2016 and July 2017.
Washington, D.C.—The U.S. population is becoming more racially diverse and older, the U.S. Census Bureau said.
According to newly released 2017 demographic estimates, the population of all race and ethnic groups, with the exception of the “non-Hispanic white alone” group, grew between July 1, 2016, and July 1, 2017.
The Hispanic population increased 2.1 percent to 58.9 million, making up 18 percent of the nation’s total population last year, primarily due to “natural increase”--the difference between births and deaths.
The black or African-American population was up slightly, increasing 1.2 percent to 47.4 million in 2017, while the American Indian or Alaska Native population increased 1.3 percent to 6.8 million, and the Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander population increased 2.1 percent to 1.6 million.
But the fastest-growing racial group in the nation was the Asian population, due primarily to net migration, the Census Bureau said. Overall, the Asian population increased 3.1 percent to 22.2 million.
Even so, there was only one state where the Asian population represented a majority: Hawaii, with 57 percent.
The population of those identifying as two or more races increased 2.9 percent to 8.7 million, making it the second-fastest growing race group in the nation, which the Census Bureau also attributes to natural increase. This group also had the youngest median age of any other age group at 20.4 years.
Meanwhile, the white alone-or-in-combination population rose by only 0.5 percent to 257.4 million, growing the slowest of all the groups.
And the non-Hispanic white alone population declined by .02 percent to 197.8 million, making it the only race group to see population decrease between 2016 and 2017. The U.S. Census Bureau also noted that this group is expected to continue aging and declining in number.
These changing demographics and how jewelers respond to them was part of what Signet CEO Gina Drosos addressed in a keynote speech given during the JCK Las Vegas jewelry trade show this year.
She said a part of growing a business and gaining consumer trust has to do with understanding how the population is changing and adapting to create new opportunities.
With the Hispanic community driving population growth and possessing $1.7 trillion in purchasing power, she asked attendees: “What are we doing as
an industry to ensure our stores, our products and our people genuinely reflect Hispanic culture and language?”
In addition to changing races and ethnicities, the U.S. Census Bureau’s new numbers also indicate that the U.S. population is aging. As a whole, it experienced a median age increase from 37.2 to 38.0 years between 2010 and 2017.
“Baby boomers, and millennials alike, are responsible for this trend in increased aging,” said Molly Cromwell, a demographer at the U.S. Census Bureau. “Boomers continue to age and are slowly outnumbering children as the birth rate has declined steadily over the last decade.”
In addition to changing races and ethnicities, the U.S. Census Bureau’s new numbers also indicate that the U.S. population is aging. As a whole, it experienced a median age increase from 37.2 to 38.0 years between 2010 and 2017.
“Baby boomers, and millennials alike, are responsible for this trend in increased aging,” said Molly Cromwell, a demographer at the U.S. Census Bureau. “Boomers continue to age and are slowly outnumbering children as the birth rate has declined steadily over the last decade.”
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