Demographics of Hispanic and Latino Americans
The demographics of Hispanic and Latino Americans depict a population that is the second-largest ethnic group in the United States, 52 million people or 16.7% of the national population, of them, 47 Million are American citizens.
Racial wage gap in the United States
The Hispanic minority group in the United States, composed of 50.3 million individuals in 2010, consists of much variance within itself with regard to wages, though all groups' wages are lower than those of non-Hispanic whites. In 2007, the largest Hispanic group, consisting of 29.2 million people, were individuals of Mexican origin, followed by 4.1 million people of Puerto Rican origin and 1.6 million people of Cuban origin. By 2009, the median income of Hispanics was lower than that of Whites and Asians, but much higher than the median wages of African-Americans; $38,039, compared to $32,584 for African-Americans and $49,777 for the general population. While their relative wages have fallen since 1979, this has been attributed to a demand for more educated workers and a gap in educational attainment, supported by the fact that college-educated Hispanic men's relative wages have changed little over time.