| Previous | Front Page Download report |
Next |
| The New Latino groups are like Cubans in having a majority of foreign-born, ranging
from 63% of Dominicans to over 70% for Central and South Americans. But they are like
Mexicans in that they represent the most recent wave of immigration - generally 45-50% of
their foreign-born arrived in the last ten years. Education. Mexicans are the least educated of the older Hispanic groups, with an average education of only 10.2 years (for those aged 25 and above). Puerto Ricans average 11.4 years, and Cubans 11.9 years. The New Latino groups range both below the Mexicans and above the Cubans. Salvadorans and Guatemalans have the least education (below 10 years). But Hispanics from most South American origins are better educated than Cubans, averaging 12.6 years. Income. Compared to Puerto Ricans and Mexicans, Cubans in the United States have always been regarded as economically quite successful. The mean earnings of employed Cubans are above $13,500, compared to about $10,000 for Puerto Ricans and $8500 for Mexicans. Only 18% of Cubans fall below the poverty line, compared to 26% of Mexicans and 30% of Puerto Ricans. Among the New Latinos, Dominicans stand out for their very low income: mean earnings below $8000 and more than a third in poverty (36%). The major Central American groups are roughly equivalent to Puerto Ricans in average earnings, though they are less likely to fall below the poverty line. On the other hand, Hispanics from South America do considerably better, and on average they earn more and have lower poverty rates than do Cubans. Unemployment and public assistance. Levels of unemployment among Hispanic groups are generally consistent with what we found to be their average earnings. New Latinos from the Dominican Republic have higher than average unemployment and they are the group most likely to be receiving public assistance (above 8% - in both respects they are less successful than Puerto Ricans). Those from South America have the lowest levels of unemployment and are even less likely than Cubans to receive public assistance. A new and wider range of social and economic characteristics accompanies the greater diversity of national origins that the New Latinos bring to the Hispanic community in the United States. It is becoming harder to talk generally about “Hispanics” - increasingly, we will have to recognize that there are many Hispanic situations in America.
|
| Previous | Front Page Download report |
Next |