Census Bureau Facts for Features
A product of the U.S. Census Bureau's Public Information Office CB99-FF.01 January 13, 1999 African American History Month: February 1-28 Education Eighty-eight percent of African Americans, ages 25 to 29, were high-school graduates in 1998, continuing an upward trend in the educational attainment of African Americans that began in 1940. As a result of this trend, the gap in high-school completion between African Americans and Whites narrowed in the 25- to 29-year-old age group over the past decade to the point where there was no statistical difference between the two racial groups in 1998. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-221.html Nearly 3 million or 15 percent of African Americans, ages 25 and over, held a bachelor's degree or higher in 1998; of these degree-holders, more than 800,000 had an advanced degree (e.g., master's, Ph.D., M.D. or J.D.). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-221.html The number of African Americans under 35 who were enrolled in college in 1996 (1.5 million) was nearly 40 percent higher than the number enrolled a decade earlier. Similarly, African American nursery-school enrollment doubled over the same period, to 702,000. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-139.html Income and Poverty African American households experienced an increase of 4.3 percent in real median income between 1996 and 1997, from $24,021 to $25,050. In the past three years (1995-1997), median-income levels of African American households achieved or surpassed their 1989 pre-recessionary peak levels. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-176.html The number of poor African Americans dropped from 9.7 million in 1996 to 9.1 million in 1997, while their poverty rate decreased from 28.4 percent to 26.5 percent. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-176.html For African American families, the number and percent in poverty fell from 2.2 million to 2.0 million and from 26.1 percent to 23.6 percent, respectively, from 1996 to 1997. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-176.html African Americans accounted for 60 percent of the decline in the number of poor persons in the United States between 1996 and 1997. Similarly, about 400,000 fewer families were poor in 1997 than in 1996 and more than half of them were African American families. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-176.html African American families with a female householder, no husband present, experienced a significant drop in both the number and percentage of families who were poor: 1.6 million and 39.8 percent in 1997, down from 1.7 million and 43.7 percent in 1996. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-176.html In 1997, the poverty rate of African American married-couple families, female-householder families with no husband present and individuals was lower than their 1989 pre-recessionary rate. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-176.html Families In 1998, there were 8.4 million African American families, nearly half of whom were married-couple families. Nearly 6 in 10 African American families included their own children under 18. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-228.html In 1998, 1.4 million African American children (12 percent) lived in a grandparent's home (with or without their parents present). More than 4 million (36 percent) resided with both their parents. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/1999/cb99-03.html In 1998, the typical African American family consisted of 3.42 members, larger than the average of 3.02 members for non-Hispanic White families but smaller than the average of 3.92 members for Hispanic families. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-228.html Among African American men ages 18 and over in 1998, 41 percent had never been married, 45 percent were currently married, 4 percent were widowed and 10 percent were divorced. Among women, the corresponding percentages were 37 percent, 39 percent, 11 percent and 13 percent. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/1999/cb99-03.html Population Distribution The nation's African American population totaled an estimated 34.5 million as of Nov. 1, 1998. It comprised 13 percent of the total population. Since July 1, 1990, the African American population has increased 13 percent while the total U.S. population grew 9 percent. http://www.census.gov/population/estimates/nation/intfile3-1.txt The nation's African American population is young, with an estimated median age of 30.0 years as of Nov. 1, 1998 five years younger than the median for the U.S. population as a whole. http://www.census.gov/population/estimates/nation/intfile3-1.txt According to middle-series population projections, the African American population is expected to grow more than twice as fast as the White population between 1995 and 2020, reaching 45.1 million. After 2016, more African Americans than non-Hispanic Whites would be added to the U.S. population each year. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb96-36.html In 1998, 55 percent of African Americans lived in the South, comprising one-fifth of that region's population. Nationwide, 54 percent resided in the central cities of metro areas. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-127.html As of July 1, 1997, according to population estimates: The 10 states with the largest African American populations were New York (3.2 million), California (2.4 million), Texas (2.4 million), Florida (2.3 million), Georgia (2.1 million), Illinois (1.8 million), North Carolina (1.6 million) and Maryland, Louisiana and Michigan (1.4 million each). The only changes in rankings from 1990 were that Louisiana and Michigan each fell one place, from 8th and 9th place to 9th and 10th place, respectively, while Maryland moved up two slots, from 10th to 8th place. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-159.html The District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.) led all states or state equivalents with the largest percentage (63 percent) of African Americans in its total population. Four Southern states rounded out the top five in this category: Mississippi (36 percent), Louisiana (32 percent), South Carolina (30 percent) and Georgia (28 percent). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-159.html Cook County (Chicago), Ill., maintained its position as the county in the United States with the largest number of African Americans (1.4 million). Los Angeles County, Calif., was second (1.0 million), followed by Kings County (Brooklyn), N.Y. (924,862), Wayne County (Detroit), Mich. (894,079), and Philadelphia County, Pa. (625,040). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-159.html With respect to African Americans as a percentage of a county's total population, Jefferson County, Miss., ranked No. 1, with 87 percent of its population made up of African Americans. Macon County, Ala., was a close second in this category (86 percent). Others in the top five were: Claiborne County, Miss. (82 percent), Hancock County, Ga. (82 percent), and Greene County, Ala. (81 percent). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-159.html Between April 1, 1990, and July 1, 1997, according to population estimates: Florida registered the biggest increase (480,255) in African American population among states. Just behind were Georgia (374,946), Texas (326,065), Maryland (200,609) and North Carolina (181,417). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-159.html Harris County (Houston), Texas, was the top gainer (73,293) in African Americans among counties. Prince George's County, Md., was No. 2, with 68,325 new African American residents, followed by Broward County (Fort Lauderdale), Fla. (67,920), Fulton County (Atlanta), Ga. (66,017), and Dallas County, Texas (45,348). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-159.html Jobs In 1998, nearly one-quarter (23 percent) of employed African American women, ages 16 and over, and 17 percent of men worked in managerial and professional specialty occupations (e.g., engineers, dentists, teachers, lawyers and reporters). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-127.html Businesses The number of African American-owned businesses in the United States increased 46 percent, from 424,165 to 620,912, between 1987 and 1992. Receipts for these firms rose 63 percent during this span, from $19.8 billion to $32.2 billion. The total number of firms in the United States increased 26 percent over the period, to 17.3 million; their receipts grew 67 percent, to $3 trillion. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb95-219.html The preceding facts come from the Current Population Survey, population estimates and projections and the Survey of Minority-Owned Business Enterprises. The data are subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Questions or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau's Public Information Office (tel: 301-457-3030; fax: 301-457-3670; e-mail: pio@census.gov).
