The Patriot Post® · 2020 Census Reveals a Different Looking Nation

The 2020 census results reveal some significant firsts regarding the ever-evolving American population. From demographic shifts to redistricting and apportionment in Congress, the census results will affect American society.

For the first time in U.S. history, the number of white non-Hispanic Americans saw a nearly 9% decrease. The 2010 census counted 223.6 million white Americans, but that number dropped to 204.3 million as of April 2020. As a result, the white majority has dropped to 57.8% — the first time whites have ever registered below 60% of the American population.

However, there may be a caveat to this figure: the significant growth — by over 226% — of the number of Americans claiming a multi-racial identity. In 2010, the number of U.S. residents claiming multi-racial status was nine million. In 2020, that number jumped to 33.8 million, or 10% of the population, which may be due to more of those who formally identified as white now embracing multi-racial identities.

That said, the data also shows that the American populace is definitively becoming more racially diverse, with the largest minority population continuing to be Hispanics. Over the last decade, the Hispanic population has grown by 12 million to a total of 62 million. Black Americans grew at a slower rate of two million to a total of 46.9 million. Yet the fastest growing racial demographic in the U.S. is that of Asian Americans, who now make up 6% of the population at nearly 19 million.

The continuing racial diversifying of America is a good thing that exposes the fallacious narrative of the critical race theorists. In certainly cuts against their dubious assertion that America was and remains established upon a foundation of “systemic racism” in support of white supremacy.

The census did also expose some concerning trends, the biggest being the slow rate of population growth. The American population now numbers 331,449,281 million, representing only a 7% increase from 2010. That’s the second-slowest growth rate in U.S. history.

The primary explanation for this slow growth is a declining birthrate. Even as the nation recovered economically from the Great Recession a decade ago, the U.S. birthrate that dropped as a result has not experienced a similar recovery, and this has been especially true among white Americans. White women are having fewer children, as more are putting off having children until their 30s.

A second concerning trend is population shift. Over the last decade, rural America has become less populated and older. Over half of the nation’s counties lost residents since 2010, and counties with fewer than 50,000 residents 10 years ago were far more likely to drop in population. Where are all these people moving? The suburbs, which have witnessed a population explosion over the last decade. America’s biggest cities also experienced population growth, with all 10 of the nation’s largest cities seeing growth.

This demographic shift is concerning when it comes to America’s agriculture. Who will be farming? But it’s also concerning from a political standpoint. Urban people tend to be more “progressive.”

Indeed, that brings us to the political ramifications. The 2020 census won’t bring about much change from a representative perspective, with just seven seats moving across 13 states. But the good news is that redistricting is the big prize following a census, and Republicans are in prime position to expand their control. GOP-run state legislatures are in charge of redrawing 187 House districts to just 75 under Democrat charge. With the 2022 midterm elections looming, conditions are primed for Republicans to take over Congress.