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(Map of the US with the top 10 states displaying the
largest African American population according to the Census Bureau)
Overview (Demographics): In July 2015, 40.7 million people in the United States were black alone, which represents 12.7 percent of the total population. African Americans are the second largest minority population, following the Hispanic/Latino population. In 2015, most blacks lived in the South (58 percent of the black U.S. population), while 35 percent of the white population lived in the South. The ten states with the largest black population in 2015 were Texas, Florida, Georgia, New York, California, North Carolina, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, Louisiana. Combined, these 10 states represent 59% of the total black population. Of the 10 largest places in the United States with 100,000 or more population in 2010, Detroit, Michigan had the largest proportion of blacks (84%), followed by Jackson, Mississippi (80%).
Educational Attainment: In 2015, as compared to non-Hispanic whites 25 years and over, a lower percentage of non-Hispanic blacks had earned at least a high school diploma (84.8 percent and 92.3 percent, respectively). 20.2 percent of non-Hispanic blacks have a bachelor’s degree or higher, as compared with 34.2 percent of non-Hispanic whites. More black women than black men had earned at least a bachelor’s degree (22.4 percent compared with 17.7 percent), while among non-Hispanic whites, a higher proportion of men than women had earned at least a bachelor’s degree (34.4 percent and 34.0 percent, respectively).
Economics: According to a 2015 Census Bureau report, the average non-Hispanic black household median income was $36,515 in comparison to $61,394 for non-Hispanic white households. In 2015, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that 25.4 percent of non-Hispanic blacks in comparison to 10.4 percent of non-Hispanic whites were living at the poverty level. For 2015, the unemployment rate for blacks was twice that for non-Hispanic whites (11.4 percent and 5.0 percent, respectively). This finding was consistent for both men and women.
Insurance Coverage: In 2015, 54.4 percent of non-Hispanic blacks in comparison to 75.8 percent of non-Hispanic whites used private health insurance. Also in 2015, 43.6 percent of non-Hispanic blacks in comparison to 32.7 percent of non-Hispanic whites relied on Medicaid, public health insurance. Finally, 11.0 percent of non-Hispanic blacks in comparison to 6.3 percent of non-Hispanic whites were uninsured.
Health Conditions: The death rate for African Americans was generally higher than whites for heart diseases, stroke, cancer, asthma, influenza and pneumonia, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and homicide.
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
