Ind. census data shows increase in diversity over last decade

Indiana became a more racially and ethnically diverse state in the last decade, according to a data analysis by InContext, a bi-monthly publication of the Indiana Business Research Center.

Between 2000 and 2010, Indiana’s minority population grew by 39 percent, or 336,237 people. In contrast, Indiana’s white population grew by 1.3 percent, or 67,080, in the same time period.

The Hispanic population grew the most, increasing 82 percent, or 175,171 people, from 2000 to 2010.

The ethnic group was the only minority group to see population growth in all of Indiana’s 92 counties.

The Hispanic population makes up 6 percent of the state’s total population.
Asians were the next highest group in terms of population growth, increasing by 73 percent, although the number of people was relatively small.

Asians make up about 1.6 percent of Indiana’s population.

African Americans saw the smallest population growth among major minority groups, increasing by 16 percent, although they are the largest minority group in the state, composing approximately 9 percent of the state’s total population.

The minority population tends to be concentrated in the state’s major urban areas.

These include Lake County in northwestern Indiana, where 45 percent of the population belongs to a minority group, and Marion County, the county containing Indianapolis, where 40 percent of people belong to a minority group.

However, the data shows that growth was widespread across the state as well.

The biggest increases in minority population tended to occur in and around major urban areas, but large increases also occurred across the state, from smaller towns to more rural areas, especially among Hispanics and people who identified as belonging to two or more races.

— Zach Ammerman