Minority populations rise in most Nebraska counties

[edsas]

(But the state is still, for the most part, white.)

Minority populations rise in most of state's counties

By SCOTT BAUER

Even though Nebraska remains predominantly populated by white people, minority populations are on the rise in most counties.


But they have a long way to go to further diversify Nebraska's racial makeup.

An Associated Press analysis of U.S. Census estimates shows that from 2000 through 2003, the state's total population increased about 1.5 percent but minorities grew 10.1percent.

The white population grew just 0.3 percent during the same time period.



The minority increase was fueled by a 12.2 percent growth in Hispanics, the state's largest minority. Blacks, the second-largest minority, grew 3.6 percent, while the Asian population, which is just 1.6 percent of the total, increased 23 percent.

From 2000 through 2003, the Hispanic population increased in 79 counties and decreased in just 14.

Of the 1.7 million people in the state in 2003, 1.5 million were white. Hispanics made up the largest minority population with 107,000. The next largest was blacks with 70,889.

The growth estimates likely are accurate given the increase in births and influx of Hispanics from other states coming to Nebraska to work in the meatpacking plants, said Cecilia Huerta, director of the state Mexican-American Commission.

A lot of good things are happening across the state to address the new immigrants, Huerta said Wednesday.

"We do see that there are a lot of communities that are really coming together, doing more outreach, forming multicultural committees and some other things that will help inform new residents moving in," she said.

Nonwhite populations increased in 78 of the state's 93 counties. The minority population decreased as a percentage of the total population in only 11 counties and was unchanged in four.

Only 15 counties had less than 90 percent white people in 2003.

Blaine County, in north-central Nebraska's Sandhills, had the highest percentage of white people in 2003 with 99.2 percent. That made it the sixth-whitest county in the entire United States. Only one county in North Dakota, three in South Dakota and one in Illinois had higher percentages of white residents.

Nebraska's Wheeler County, just two counties to the east of Blaine County, was the 10th-most white in the nation at 99.1 percent.

Of the Nebraska counties where white people were less than 90 percent, most of those making up the difference were Hispanic.

In all of those counties, except Douglas and Thurston, Hispanics made up the largest minority. In Douglas County, blacks were the largest minority at 11 percent.

Thurston County was the only Nebraska county in 2003 that had a majority nonwhite population. Fifty-six percent of people living in that county were members of a minority, most of them Natives. The county is home to both the Winnebago and Omaha reservations.

Thurston County was 197th nationwide for largest percentage of minorities.

Colfax, Dawson and Dakota counties all had the largest percentage Hispanic populations in 2003 in Nebraska - at 28 percent, 28 percent and 24 percent respectively.

Colfax County came in 188th nationwide for the largest percentage of Hispanic residents. The top 10 counties all were in Texas.

The census estimates are determined by reviewing various data and working off the most recent 10-year census, conducted in April 2000.

[projectman]

Diversification is good. I was surprised that Hispanics were not the largest minority in Douglas County.

[DTO Luv]

I thought their would be more black people than that. I thought Omaha would have closer to 100,000 black people. We need more of them.

[almighty_tuna]

I thought Omaha would have closer to 100,000 black people. We need more of them.

!

[projectman]

Be careful DTO.

[DTO Luv]

Be careful about what? I would like to see more people of MY color in Omaha. Places with large black populations are more appealing to people other minorities. Look at Memphis and Atlanta. They have very large black populations and draw many more black and minority people.

[projectman]

Just the way you wrote it sounded strange. "We need more of them". Like "them people".

[DTO Luv]

Oh. I get you. Don't worry.