Blacks Demographic Change and Public Policy: Migration and Population Distribution Trends, Volume 1

摘要

This report analyzes changes that occurred in the black population during the 1970's within the context of the Nation's overall demographic profile. Following a summary of black demographic history from 1865 to 1970, the document describes migration trends among the four major geographical regions during the 1970's. An analysis of net migration by State provides a more detailed explanation of these regional movements. Other chapters address the demographic characteristics of standard metropolitan statistical areas and black suburbanization. During each of the past three decades, the black population increased at a substantially more rapid rate than the white population. On the whole, blacks and whites were about equally mobile during the 1970 - 80 period. A major development was a reversal of the trend of net black migration from the South to the North. Moreover, the proportion of the black population located in the South remain constant during the 1970's at 53 percent. Although the black population of central cities increased at a lower rate than during the previous decade, blacks remained a larger proportion of total central city population because of the very high net out - migration by whites. The black population became even more urban in the 1970's, with 81.1 percent living in metropolitan areas compared to 74.3 in 1970. Black suburbanization continued, but appeared to be more the expansion of central city ghettos across official city lines rather than assimilation of blacks into formerly all - white suburbs. Maps, tables, and references are supplied.