Fewer and Fewer Congressional Districts Are Predominantly White

Posted on December 17, 2009

What’s happening in your neighborhood, barrio, neck of the woods? Play around with this demographic and congressional district interactive map to trace the demographic tsunami in motion in the United States. Make sure to click on both the Population and Change Map and the District Comparison Chart buttons. You can also sort by each of the different racial/ethnic groups and by state and district.

Remember: Demographics shape politics, economics, and workforces. The change is inevitable. Whether people or organizations are ready or not, the tsunami has either already or soon will be hitting a shore near you.

About Andrés

Andrés Tapia is President of Diversity Best Practices, the preeminent diversity and inclusion thinktank and consultancy. In this role, he helps companies create first-in-class diversity strategies and develop innovative solutions for culture change. Previously he served as Hewitt’s Chief Diversity Officer and Emerging Workforce Solutions Leader. As a published writer and prominent speaker, Andrés offers thought-provoking views about diversity’s impact around the world. He is the author of The Inclusion Paradox: The Obama Era and the Transformation of Global Diversity. Find his bio here.

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Comments

One Response to “Fewer and Fewer Congressional Districts Are Predominantly White”

Vic Maurer says:

December 18, 2009 at 10:57 AM

Very interesting, thank you for sharing!

Previous to my current home, I lived in the IL-4th Congressional District that makes up parts of Chicago. The 4th is one of the most “creatively” drawn districts in the country. It connects the primarily Mexican American community of Pilsen on the South Side of Chicago to the mixed latino populations of Belmont-Cragin, Humboldt Park, and Logan Square on the North West side of Chicago. To accomplish this, the district snakes along a forest preserve, along the 294 Expressway, and through some rail yards. http://www.govtrack.us/congress/findyourreps.xpd?state=IL&district=4

Even after such a massive effort to group people into districts by race and ethnicity, the demographic shifts you mention are making these districts more and more heterogeneous. Very exciting stuff for electoral politics in the places where the shift has accelerated well beyond normal – and while conflict abounds, it will be good for communities and business as well.