15
inMexico, alongwith those from the secondand third
generation ofMexican origin, have helped to counter
the decrease in the population of working age in the
UnitedStates, though toa lesserdegree than in the two
previous decades (Table1).
Between 2004 and 2013, the total population
of working age increased by 13.6million persons, of
which 36%wereMexican and ofMexican origin, a si-
milar percentage to the contributionof all immigrants.
Significantly, as reflects the aging of the baby boom
generation, thegreatest increase in thepopulationoc-
curred among persons between 45 and 64 years old
(12.5million), of whom18%were of Mexican origin.
In contrast, for older adults (65 years andabove), US-
born non-Hispanic white residents and those from
other immigrant regions accounted for approximately
80%of the increase (Table1).
Geographicdistribution
ofMexican immigration
The amount of Mexican migration to the United
States over the past 40 years has contributed to
making their presence throughout the countrymore
visible. Directly linked to the high number ofMexican
migrants over recent decades, Mexicanmigration has
spread throughout the whole of the United States.
Though California and Texas remain the states with
the highest concentration of Mexicans (37% and
22% respectively), the locationofmigratoryflows re-
veal agradual variationover time.
According to thedataavailable for2012,Mexi-
cans account for over 30% of immigrants from all
countries in 18 western and south-western states.
Over 50% of these immigrants are resident in three
of these states, Arizona, NewMexico and Texas, an
impressive fact considering that they are merely
one immigrant group amongmany others (Map 1).
The northeast of theUnited States, in addition
toNorthDakota andHawaii, remains the regionwith
the lowest proportion of Mexican immigrants (under
5%), though in2012PennsylvaniaandNewYork join-
ted the5% to14% range. Thus the concentration of
Mexican immigration is still significantly influencedby
proximity to the border with Mexico. These regions
have larger communities of Mexicans andmore con-
solidated social networks facilitatingmigration.
The majority of Mexican immigrants live in US
urban centers. In 2012 the metropolitan zones with
the highest number of Mexicans are Los Angeles-
Long Beach-Anaheim, in California (1.7 million); Chi-
cago-Naperville-Elgin, in Illinois (695,000); Dallas-Fort
Worth-Arlington, in Texas (605,000); Houston-The
Woodlands-SugarLand, inTexas(597,000); andRiver-
side-SanBernardino-Ontario, inCalifornia (570,000).
chapter i •
characteristics of mexican immigrants in the united states
