The Fallouts of Demographic Change

Until I read an excerpt from Steve Phillips’ Brown is the New White, I had not realized the extent and speed of the demographic change in the US:

“People of color now comprise more than 37 percent of the U.S. population, greater than triple the 12 percent in 1965.”

The “color” that has increased the most is brown, thanks to the influx of Latinos (Mexicans and South Americans) – 9 to 54 million – and Asians – 2 to 18 million.

 

Consider the daily change in the composition of America’s population:

“Each day, the size of the U.S. population increases by more than 8,000 people, and nearly 90 percent of that growth consists of people of color.”

The absolute birth count on a daily basis is 50-50 between whites and the rest. But since most old people are white, the death rate is far higher among whites. As if all this wasn’t enough, 90% of daily immigrants to the US are non-whites.

 

The short extract explains the rising fear among the whites, and how Trump and his party capitalized on that fear. And then I began to wonder about other consequences of such a massive and rapid demographic change.

 

Will an America, with non-whites having a greater say in politics and policies, continue on the same trajectory of economic, technical and scientific growth as the last century or so?

 

Will a non-white majority America have the same level of rapport with Europe as it has had for so long? Or will that alliance start to fray at the edges, with all the associated fallouts? Will it continue to be as hostile to the rise of China as it is today?

 

We tend to wonder whether China can rise to be a peer (or even overtake) the US. In what ways might China stumble, slow down, or fail, we ask. Perhaps we also need to start asking how America’s changing demographic will impact its own future and policies. Because a bipolar world just needs two equally powerful countries (on military and economic fronts) – and that can happen as China rises to the US’s level. Or it can happen if the US starts to decay due to the demographic driven changes happening within itself.

 

We live in interesting times…

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