Hispanics Are Surging in Arizona

New York Times: In Arizona, fervor against illegal immigration is so intense that politicians have pushed some of the nation’s toughest laws and citizen activists have patrolled the border themselves. But census data released Thursday show another side of the population story: Arizonans are increasingly becoming Hispanic. Still, the increase in Hispanics, to just under 30 percent of the population last year from 25 percent in 2000, has been slower than some studies predicted. Tough economic times coupled with restrictions on illegal immigrant workers are probably responsible for driving many Hispanics away, analysts say. “The Hispanic population has gone up, but it didn’t go up as much as people thought,” said Tom Rex, associate director of the Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research at the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. “Or maybe it did go up and then dropped when those who got here couldn’t find jobs.” Over all, Arizona’s population has boomed to 6.4 million from 5.1 million over the last decade, at a rate second only to Nevada’s, and much of the growth is a result of a 46 percent increase in the Hispanic population, said Bill Schooling, the state demographer.