Racial Diversity in Wisconsin

Wednesday, June 15th, 2022 -- 9:01 AM

The U.S. has long been known for its diversity relative to other nations. For hundreds of years, migration and growth have brought people of countless different backgrounds to the American melting pot.

And the U.S. today is only growing more diverse over time, and frequently in new ways. Diversity in the population can have a number of definitions or interpretations, which has made it complicated for demographers to measure.

Individuals who identify as some kind of racial or ethnic minority have become an increasing share of the population, but people increasingly have multiracial or multiethnic identities as well.

And within different racial or ethnic categories, birthplace and migration history or ancestry can also affect how people identify and how they experience their identity day-to-day.

At a high level, however, one simple but significant sign of the diversification of the U.S. population is the decreasing share of people who identify as White alone, not Hispanic. This category represented 59.9% of the U.S. population in 2020, down from 64% in 2010 and 78.2% in 1980.

In a handful of states, non-Hispanic Whites now represent less than half of the population, and demographers anticipate that the U.S. as a whole is likely to become “majority-minority” sometime in the 2040s.

The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey. To determine the best locations to move to for diversity, researchers at Filterbuy calculated a composite index based on equally-weighted indices of ethnic/racial diversity, birthplace diversity, and economic equality.

Here is a summary of the data for Wisconsin:

• Composite index: 47.89;
• Ethnic/racial diversity index: 34.00;
• Birthplace diversity index: 43.00;
• And Economic equality index: 66.67.

For reference, here are the statistics for the entire United States:

• Ethnic/racial diversity index: 58.69;
• And Birthplace diversity index: 56.99.

For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report on Filterbuy’s website: https://filterbuy.com/resources/best-cities-to-move-to-for-diversity/

Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.