According to U.S. Census data, the number of white Americans fell by close to 100,000 in 2016 and continued falling in 2017 and 2018.
As the Brookings' chart on this data below (click to enlarge) shows, the white population change in the U.S. has been declining for several decades. But in the last 3 years, it fell.
Key quote from the Brookings report on this data:
An important finding in the new census data is the decline of the nationwide white population for the third consecutive year. Between 2016 and 2019, the white population declined from 197,845,666 to 197,309,822, in yearly amounts of -97,507, -212,957 and -225,380. This three-year loss of over a half-million whites was enough to counter gains earlier in the decade, in total yielding a loss of white U.S. residents from 2010 to 2019.
And this change, thanks to the large cohort of aging baby boomers, is expected to continue.
But while the number of whites declined, other demographic groups increased in number. Again from the Brookings' report:
The unanticipated decline in the country’s white population means that other racial and ethnic groups are responsible for generating overall growth. Nationally, the U.S. grew by 19.5 million people between 2010 and 2019—a growth rate of 6.3%. While the white population declined by a fraction of a percent, Latino or Hispanic, Asian American, and Black populations grew by rates of 20%, 29%, and 8.5%, respectively.
We've long covered the changing demographic make-up of the United States. These changes are, if anything, accelerating.
Just 6 years ago most demographers projected that the U.S. would become a minority-majority nation sometime around 2040.
But this new data indicates that it will likely happen sooner, probably around 2035 (whites currently make up about 60% of America's population).
BTW, it's highly likely 2020 will the be the year when less than half of U.S. children aged 18 and under will be non-Hispanic white alone (49.8 percent of the projected 73.9 million children under age 18).
So our shift to being a minority-majority nation is well underway.
