From the Asbury Park Press:
Hispanic surge has N.J. still growing
Vineet Agarwal moved to New Jersey four years ago from his native India, becoming one of the 310,000 residents the state has added in the first six years of this millennium.
Immigrants attracted by New Jersey’s robust economy and a surge in minorities — Hispanics in particular — boosted the Garden State’s population to just over 8.7 million in 2006, up from 8.4 million six years earlier, according to data the U.S. Census Bureau released Thursday.
“Wherever you get an opportunity, you move. It happened that I got an opportunity in this area,” said Agarwal, who works for a Princeton company and is lobbying Congress to reduce bureaucratic delays immigrants face in trying to become permanent residents.
New Jersey’s population growth is overwhelmingly due to minorities. Census figures show the number of white residents who aren’t of Hispanic origin declined by 147,000 from 2000-2006, a trend demographers attribute to lower birth rates and migration to nearby states with cheaper housing costs. Non-Hispanic whites remain the largest racial group in New Jersey at 5.4 million in 2006.
Two out of three new Garden State residents are from Latin America or have Hispanic roots, the numbers show. In 2000, 1.1 million Hispanics called New Jersey home. Six years later, that number climbed to nearly 1.4 million.
…
The Garden State has always been a magnet for immigrants, with large numbers of Europeans moving to the state in 19th and early 20th centuries, said James Hughes, a Rutgers University demographer. Since 1980, the state’s booming economy has created a second wave of newcomers with varying skills and educational levels to work in high-tech industries and perform manual labor.“You need highly skilled workers for pharmaceutical companies,” Hughes said. “You also have McMansions, which need their lawns cut.”
The number of white residents is declining mainly because the white birth and death rates are roughly equal, said Mark Mather, a demographer with the Washington-based Population Reference Bureau. Not so among minorities.
For instance, Hispanic birth rates are 10 times higher than the death rate because immigrants tend to be younger, Mather said.
“Two out of three new Garden State residents are from Latin America or have Hispanic roots.”
I must say, that is incredible. I am a big immigration fan…but I would like a bigger mix of the melting pot…too much of any one group is not so encouraging for NJ. Where’s the chineese? indians? did the europeans give up on us?
You grow where you’re planted… so this trend will likely feed on itself, which is why a greater mix of all is better for all IMHO.
Curiousd,
I’d love a broader mix too, but I’ll take what I can get. My area is not too bad in terms of more Indians, Asians, etc, although I think more Africans/African Americans would be a big plus too.
Part of the reason I chose my town (Ocean Twp., Monmouth) was it had at least somewhat of a racial/socio-economic mix, but the last 7 or 8 years definitely pushed out many minorities, and basically almost all working class people. That trend isn’t set in stone though.
lindsey, thats where my wife and i are looking…you’ve answered a question or two on the region for us over the last months.
still looking south-ish towards manasquan/spring lake/breille b/c dont need to be able to get in the city…but prices are out of reach still.
time will tell…noooo rush on this decision.
NJ has a robust economy? hoem health care attendants and restaurant workers are buying 500K POS capes?
Where’s the chineese? indians? did the europeans give up on us?
Maybe they figured out how to make their own countries (and by extension their own lives) more successful?
Just a thought.
Ocean twp is nice but property tax is very high..Manasquan (I grew up there)is one of the nicest towns at the shore people who grew up there tend to move back.Property tax is reasonable .schools are rated very high .the budgets are voted down a lot and sent back to be re-worked. I worked in NYC so Manasquan was to far to travel so i settled on little Silver it WAS nice but the newbies ruined it (My house must be bigger than yours)Taxes are out of sight (I pay 22,000)traffic is a real problem as well are soccer moms with SUV’s …but such is N.J .