By Karen Aho and Quinn Bankson

Black immigrants not solely contribute to America’s wealthy political and cultural historical past—suppose rapper Wyclef Jean, U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, or basketball’s Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon, to call however a only a few—additionally they play an necessary and rising function in our financial system, making outsize contributions in industries dealing with crucial employee shortages, equivalent to healthcare and transportation.

Quick Development of the Black Immigrant Inhabitants

In a single decade, the Black immigrant inhabitants elevated by a notable 23.5%, from 3.5 million in 2012 to 4.3 million in 2022. Whereas Black immigrants comprise simply 1.3% of the entire U.S. inhabitants, they focus in a number of massive states with sizable immigrant populations. Black immigrants are outlined as any one who was born exterior the US to non-U.S. citizen mother and father and who identifies as Black or African American within the American Neighborhood Survey.

The Black immigrant inhabitants has grown notably quickly in Texas, which practically doubled from 172,000 Black immigrants in 2012 to 309,900 in 2022. Nonetheless, Black immigrants within the state nonetheless comprise a small fraction of the populace—or 1.0% in 2022.

Of the nation’s 4.3 million Black immigrants, 2.5 million—or 58.6%—are eligible voters. Greater than 20.3% of those eligible voters dwell in New York and 17.1% dwell in Florida, giving them extra electoral energy in state or native elections. Most of America’s Black immigrants have moved right here from the Caribbean and Sub-Saharan Africa, with the best numbers hailing from Jamaica and Haiti.

Employment, Taxes, and Spending Energy

In whole, greater than 2.8 million Black immigrants have been in America’s workforce in 2022, supporting a number of fast-growing industries equivalent to healthcare and transportation.

As American healthcare faces a rising scarcity of staff throughout the trade, Black immigrants are serving to to fill the gaps. A couple of-quarter of working Black immigrants (26.9%) are employed within the healthcare and social help trade. Amongst healthcare occupations, 138,900 Black immigrants work as registered nurses, 94,300 as private care aides, and 24,400 as physicians. Regardless of comprising simply 1.3% of the U.S. inhabitants, Black immigrants make up 3.3% of the healthcare and social help workforce.

Black immigrants additionally punch nicely above their weight in transportation and warehousing, the place they make up 3.6% of the workforce. Greater than 101,900 Black immigrants work as truck drivers, one other occupation that continues to expertise quick progress. Black immigrants additionally comprise 2.0% of the army workforce.

Whereas serving to to fill crucial job shortages, Black immigrant staff are additionally contributing to the general public coffers and supporting native companies via housing, meals, way of life, and different expenditures. In 2022, Black immigrants in the US earned $176.7 million and paid $28.7 million in federal taxes and $17.0 million in state and native taxes, leaving them with $130.9 million in spending energy.

As we honor the struggles and triumphs of all Black People all through historical past, allow us to not neglect the more and more important function performed by Black immigrants. With an growing old inhabitants and rising labor shortages in crucial fields, the US advantages from the outsized contributions these immigrants make.

FILED UNDER: american group survey