The News and Tribune, Jeffersonville, Indiana (TNS)
Indiana’s population is becoming more diverse, and that brings about opportunities and challenges.
Last month, the Indiana Capital Chronicle reported that Marion County — the state’s most populous county — became majority non-white between 2020 and 2023.
Further south, the News and Tribune reported in June that the Louisville Metropolitan area — which includes the Indiana counties of Floyd, Clark and Harrison — saw an increase of almost 5% in its Hispanic population from 2022-2023.
Without the rise in Hispanic residents, Louisville Metro’s population would have decreased over the year by about .01%.
Lillian Rose, CEO of the nonprofit Hispanic Connection of Southern Indiana, works with families seeking citizenship, work visas and help with legal paperwork. She told the News and Tribune that her office is seeing a “tsunami” of families seeking assistance so that they can legally live and work in the Hoosier State.
“People are able to work and live fairly well in Indiana,” she said.
According to the Indiana Capital Chronicle, Marion County gained about 7,000 Black, 5,000 Hispanic and 3,900 Asian residents between 2020-2023. Aaron Dusso, a political science professor at Indiana University in Indianapolis, told the news outlet that politics may play some part in the changing demographics.
“One thing this could suggest … is that people are moving to places where they feel their politics are more aligned,” Dusso told the Capital Chronicle, adding that Black and Hispanic voters aren’t always Democrats and the population shift could also present opportunities for the Republican Party.
Politics aside, Hoosiers should be proud of the fact that more people of color are moving into the state’s metro areas. Indiana has a poor history when it comes to race relations, but this shift in demographics signals a new day for the state.
We are inundated with scary stories about undocumented people hopping over fences and bringing drugs into our country. Families who are seeking a better life are often demonized because of the actions of a few. Yes, our nation’s immigration policies and practices are far from perfect, but, as Rose told the News and Tribune, “We are a nation of immigrants.”
And without immigration, our economy would be in big trouble. Louisville Metro, for example, would be struggling to fill jobs and keep up its tax base without the increase in Hispanic residents.
The challenges ahead include further diversifying our education instruction, understanding cultural distinctions and embracing the changes in our communities.
Our backgrounds and lifestyles distinguish us, yet we are still held together by common goals. We want good jobs to provide for our families, we want to live in safe areas and send our children to quality schools. We want a better life for the next generation, access to reliable health care and the freedom to make our own choices about our lives.
These are considered American dreams, but they aren’t just the dreams of white people. It’s great news that Indiana, despite stereotypes and assumptions about the state, is a place where people of many different cultures and races are choosing to live their dreams.
