California About to Have More Latinos Than Whites

By this time next year, white people will be a minority in California. According to new demographic information released yesterday by the state's Department of Finance, Latinos will catch up to whites by the middle of this year, with each representing roughly 39% of the population. By next year, Latinos will be the relative majority, and their edge looks on track to grow from there; the department estimates that by 2060, they'll make up 48% of the population, compared to 30% for whites, the LA Times reports.

What's more, the Latino population is significantly younger than the white one, meaning white people will make up an ever-smaller portion of the work force. By 2030, there will be 7.2 million Latinos younger than 25 and 2.2 million seniors; among whites, those numbers will be 3.8 million and 4.1 million, respectively. "This should serve as a wake-up call and [make us] appreciate how the older generation needs the younger generation," one USC demography professor says. "Without the babies born to those immigrant mothers, we would really be in deep trouble." (More Latinos stories.)