Lab 7

The first map of the Census 2000 Racial Composition by County series presents the percentage of Blacks by county in the Continental United States. As seen in this first map, the Black population in the United States is heavily concentrated in the South. Additionally, throughout the majority of the continental United States the percentage of Blacks that populate a given county is very low. Nevertheless, in urban pockets of the United States one sees a substantial increase in the percentage of Blacks in the county population. However, as previously stated, the Black population by county is largest in the Deep South with the largest proportion of blacks in Mississippi and Alabama. For instance, the largest percentage of Blacks occurs in Jefferson County, Mississippi, where Blacks occupy 86% of the total population. When comparing this spatial data with other census data, one notices a striking correlation between areas with heavy concentrations of Blacks with areas of lower income and education levels.

The second map presents the United States Asian population by county in the year 2000. With few exceptions in urban pockets, the population of Asians is relatively sparse in the majority middle America. In the North East and West Coast one sees, however, the largest populations of Asians in the United States. For example, the four counties with the largest concentration of Asians all are within the San Francisco Bay Area. That said, the percentage of Asians in any given county is very low: most counties in the United States have fewer than a 2% Asian population and the largest population in the continental United States in San Francisco County is only 31%.

The final map demonstrates the Census defined "Other Races" as a percentage of total county population in the United States in the year 2000. As one can infer from this map and the Census data source, the category is predominately occupied by Hispanic or Latino individuals. As a result, the largest density of individuals classified as "Other Races" occurs in the American Southwest from Texas to California. With very few exceptions, significant county population percentages of "Other Races" is restricted to counties within these states. For example, the largest proportion of "Other Races" are in Imperial County, CA and Guadeloupe County, NM with populations of approximately 40%. When one compares this data with other Census information one notices a striking correlation between areas of heavy unemployment. Furthermore, the geographic distribution of agricultural zones and proximity to the Mexican border points to large immigrant populations.

Taken as a whole, the ability to utilize Census data in ArcGIS is extremely powerful. The functionality of layering in GIS applications when combined with the multitude of information categories provided by the US census allows individuals to present a holistic view of the United States population. As seen in the maps that I constructed, GIS allows users to demonstrate population trends among races in an abstract form that enables ease of communication. Although some information is obscured in the form presented (such as country wide population percentages), individual county population populations when combined in a national spatial distribution ultimately convey a powerful message whereby information can be inferred.