Getting at the meaning of Census 2000 in six states
 Aging Japanese American population loses numbers in California
Low birth rates, barely a trickle of new immigrants, and a relatively high outmarriage rate have eroded California’s Japanese American community.
“Most people I know don’t really identify as Japanese specifically, they just consider themselves Asian, or don’t consider it at all,” said Lance Obuchi, a 32-year-old graphic designer from Fullerton.
Even as the state’s Asian American population surged ahead during the 1990s, the number of residents of Japanese descent declined notably, new census data show. California lost 24,000 residents with Japanese ancestry over the last decade, an 8 percent drop. Meanwhile, communities with origins in India, Vietnam, China, Korea and the Philippines all grew dramatically, boosting California’s overall API population by more than 60 percent.
Californians of Japanese descent now number 289,000, or just under 1 percent of the state’s 33.9 million residents.
BACK TO TOP
Florida’s Asian population increases 77.7 percent
The sounds of Saigon Radio, muggy summer weather, mangoes and guava have combined to make Florida a home away from home for thousands of Vietnamese and other Asian Americans.
In the past decade the state’s API population has increased by almost 78 percent, according to new Census 2000 figures. One of the largest communities is found in Orlando, where thousands of Vietnamese Americans have moved into the Colonialtown area, about three miles from downtown.
It is obvious the Vietnamese have made an impact on the city. Asian restaurants abound, offering everything from sub sandwiches to steaming bowls of pho. Jewelers, travel agencies and dentists advertise their wares and services in Vietnamese.
While half a world separates Vietnam and central Florida, local civic and business leaders say there’s one similarity that makes Orlando such a draw for Southeast Asians: the weather, with its temperate winters and muggy summers.
“I think the Vietnamese people are looking for the climate, the weather,” said Lee Do, manager of Tien-Hung Oriental Foods. “It’s comfortable for them, and feels like their hometowns.”
South Asian Americans were the state’s largest group in the census’ Asian category with 70,740, followed by Filipino with 54,310, Chinese with 46,368, Vietnamese with 33,190, Koreans with 19,139, and Japanese with 10,897.
BACK TO TOP
Massachusetts community grows in size and diversity
One group, South Asian Americans, has become the picture of the successful immigrant group in Massachusetts, settling in cities and suburbs, often in highly skilled positions. Vietnamese Americans, by contrast, have struggled with low-paying jobs and are concentrated mostly in large cities.
Both are part of the burgeoning Asian American community, which grew more quickly than any other large ethnic group in the state, according to census figures released this month.
The figures, which detail API ethnic groups for the first time, also help to illustrate the diversity among Asian Americans.
Overall, Asian Americans grew by nearly 68 percent, reaching 238,124, or 3.8 percent of the total population. Chinese Americans remained the largest Asian ethnic group, with 84,392.
But the fastest growth in Massachusetts was among Indian and Vietnamese Americans. The number of South Asian Americans grew to 43,801, an increase of 122 percent, from 1990 to 2000. The number of Vietnamese rose to 33,962, an increase of 120 percent during the decade.
Nevertheless, both groups remain small as a percentage of the overall population, at less than 1 percent.
They’ve concentrated in the cities where they can find well-established communities and services, but many speak little English and have few marketable job skills, said Long Nguyen, executive director of Viet AID, an economic development organization based in the Dorchester section of Boston.
A recent survey of Vietnamese living in Boston conducted by Viet AID showed many working in assembly line jobs, making between $8 to $11 per hour.
Indian Americans have also benefited from immigration, with their growth spurred in large part by the demand for high-tech workers, and many arriving on specialized work visas or to complete their studies.
Sachin Vora, 27, moved to the United States in 1998 to complete a master’s degree in computer engineering and now works as a software engineer. Expecting to find himself somewhat isolated, he said he was “pleasantly shocked” when, only days after first arriving in Lowell, he discovered a temple and found himself with hundreds of other Indians.
“This feels like I’m back in India,” he said.
BACK TO TOP
Michigan going beyond black and white
Whites and blacks make up a combined 95 percent of Michigan’s population, but rapid growth of Hispanic and Asian subgroups in the 1990s suggests more diversity may be on the way. People of Indian and Vietnamese origin more than doubled their numbers in the state, while those of Mexican descent increased 59.6 percent, according to census data released last Wednesday.
Overall numbers of such minorities remained small relative to states such as California and Texas. Still, Michigan’s numbers could spiral as immigrants get settled and are joined by relatives and friends, said William Frey, a University of Michigan demographer.
“Once you establish a community, it keeps adding people, especially since immigration law encourages family reunification,” Frey said. “That’s why the states that already have the biggest Asian and Hispanic communities get the biggest increases.”
Whites comprised 80.2 percent of Michigan’s 9.9 million people last year, and blacks made up 14.2 percent. Hispanics accounted for 3.3 percent and Asians 1.8 percent. But while the white population grew by 2.7 percent and the number of blacks increased 9.4 percent, Hispanics grew 60 percent and Asians 70.5 percent.
The number of South Asian Americans increased from 23,845 to 54,631, up 129 percent. Vietnamese Americans went from 6,117 to 13,673, up 123 percent. Korean Americans in the state increased 28 percent, and the Japanese American population grew a more modest 5.7 percent.
BACK TO TOP
Vietnamese a growing presence in Nebraska
The weekly Mass at St. Cecilia’s Catholic Church in Hastings, Neb., starts a little earlier each week for Vin Gno than other parishioners. Every Friday afternoon he painstakingly begins the process of translating into Vietnamese every word from the sermon, homily and other readings the Rev. Larry Gyhra will present at that weekend’s services.
“Vietnamese Catholics attend Mass every weekend, but don’t understand anything,” Gno said. “That’s the least I can do for them.”
Gno started the translation service in January when more of the 140 Vietnamese Catholics were skipping church because they did not understand the English service.
The language barrier is becoming more common in Hastings, where the city has gone from four Vietnamese American residents in 1990 to 353 last year, Census 2000 figures show.
Statewide, there were 21,931 Asians, an 84 percent increase since 1990.
That number ranks Asians as the third largest minority — behind Latinos and blacks — in Nebraska. Whites comprise almost 90 percent of the state’s 1.7 million residents. Vietnamese Americans make up the largest block of APIs in Nebraska, with a population of 6,364. That is up 252 percent from 1990 figures.
Lincoln has the most Vietnamese in the state with 3,765 residents. Dau Nguyen, a Vietnamese American community leader, said he is proud of the new residents who took part in the U.S. Census. He said in Vietnam, when the government came to your door for a census, you could wind up in jail.
“The Vietnamese people really appreciate the life here,” he said. “Children can have a good education and you don’t have to worry who comes to our house to do the census.”
BACK TO TOP
Newcomers give more diverse look to Oregon
Dave Kim and his American wife, Deanne, wanted to add a baby daughter to their family nine years ago. They looked to Dave’s homeland and found a Korean baby girl to join their brood.
The girl, Deahnne, is now age 9. She lives in an upper-middle class Portland suburb with her adoptive parents and their four other children — who are all half-Korean.
Deahnne is being raised like any other American kid. But her father doesn’t want her to forget her ancestry — which is the same as his.
“My biggest thing that I teach my kids is be the best American you can be,” said Dave Kim, “but don’t forget your Korean heritage.”
Deahnne Kim was part of a significant Asian immigrant influx into Oregon during the past decade.
According to new figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of Asian Americans in Oregon grew by 58 percent between 1990 and 2000. They are the second-fastest growing ethnic group in the state, behind Latinos.
Oregon’s Vietnamese American population grew by 108 percent — from 9,088 to 18,890, according to the census figures. The state’s Chinese American population grew from 13,652 to 20,930, a 53 percent rise. There was a 43 percent rise in the number of Korean Americans, increasing to 12,387 — with the largest concentration in Washington County, where the Kims live. The number of Filipinos grew 43 percent, to 10,627.
Still, Oregon’s 101,350 APIs constitute only 3 percent of the state’s population of 3.4 million.
The Asian Americans are coming for various reasons — to join relatives already here, to work, and for school.
Many Asians find work at major companies such as Nike, based in Oregon, or Intel, which has its largest division spread around the metro area.
There are many successes among Oregon’s Asians, illustrated by Portland’s Sandy Boulevard, a Vietnamese enclave. The neighborhood’s restaurants and markets are alive with business. Nonetheless, Asians are nearly absent from state politics.
“They are more involved in academics and business, but not so much in politics. I hope that will change,” said Sen. Mae Yih, D-Albany, the only Asian American to serve in the state Legislature. Born in mainland China, she came to the United States in 1948 to attend college in New York before moving to Albany in 1956.
BACK TO TOP
|
