Chapter 2
Family Life and Living Arrangements

The family is regarded as the cornerstone of society in the United States. For many years, particularly when the United States was primarily an agricultural society, extended families—multiple generations living in the same household—were considered typical. As the culture became more urban and mobile, nuclear families—two parents and their children—became the American norm.

However, the makeup of families and their role in society have been undergoing change. Shifts in economics, employment, moral values, and social conditions have led to an increasing number of single men and women living alone, cohabitations without marriage, and single-parent families. A growing number of children, especially minority children, are being raised by only one parent or by neither parent, as in the case of children being raised by grandparents or foster parents. How these changes impact minorities in the United States can be best understood through a detailed look at minority families.

MARITAL STATUS

The U.S. Census Bureau (June 29, 2005, http://www.census.gov/population/socdemo/hh-fam/ms1.pdf) reports that in 2004, 125.8 million Americans (age fifteen and older) were married, up from 95.3 million in 1970 and 112.6 million in 1990. This figure includes both those who did and those who did not live with their spouses. However, the proportion of people of marriage age who were married has decreased steadily since 1960. In 1960, 67.6% of this population was married, dropping to 64.2% in 1970, 61% in 1980, 58.7% in 1990, 56.2% in 2000, and to a low of 55.4% in 2004. The proportion of African-Americans who were married has been lower than the proportion of married adults in the general population since 1950 and has dropped faster as well. Of all African-Americans age fifteen and older, 63.2% were married in 1950, 60.3% in 1960, 55.4% in 1970, 46.5% in 1980, 42.4% in 1990, 39.2% in 2000, and 38.2% in 2004. Among Asians and Pacific Islanders, 53.9% were married in 2003. (See Table 2.1.)

Never Married

Racial differences among never-married people are significant. Among those over age fifteen, African-Americans are far more likely than whites, Hispanics, or Asians and Pacific Islanders to have never married. In 2003, 43.6% of African-Americans had never been married, compared with 24.6% of whites, 32.5% of Asians and Pacific Islanders, and 35.3% of Hispanics. (See Table 2.1.)

One reason that the proportion of never-married individuals age fifteen years and older has increased is that the age at first marriage has steadily risen since 1970 for all races and ethnic groups. The median age of first marriage for women has risen from 20.8 in 1970 to 25.3 in 2003. The median age of first marriage for men has risen from 23.2 in 1970 to 27.1 in 2003. (See Figure 2.1.) This rise in the age of first marriage accounts for some of the decreases in proportions of adults who are married.

Interracial Marriage

The Census Bureau reports that the number of interracial married couples more than tripled between 1980 and 2004. For example, in 1980 there were 167,000 black-white interracial couples; by 2004 there were 413,000 black-white interracial couples. In 1980 there were 450,000 couples with one white spouse and one spouse of a race other than white or black, such as Native American or Asian and Pacific Islander; in 2004, 1.6 million married couples fit this description. Even though the proportion of interracial married couples is rising, the vast majority of married couples continues to be of the

same race. In 1980, 651,000 (1.3%) married couples were interracial; by 2004 there were 2.1 million (3.6%). (See Table 2.2.)

MIXED-RACE CHILDREN

The number of births to mixed-race parents has kept pace with increases in interracial marriage and cohabitation. The change in the question of race for the 2000 census, which enabled people to identify themselves by multiple races, made it easier to track mixed-race Americans. According to the 2000 census, 3.9 million (1.4%) Americans identified themselves as belonging to two or more races. (See Table 2.3.) By 2004 that number had grown to 4.4 million Americans, an increase of 13.9%.

In 2000, 907,000 Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders reported being of mixed race; in 2004 there were 976,000. Approximately 4.4 million Native Americans and Alaska Natives were multiracial in 2004, as opposed to 4.2 million in 2000. In 2000 there were twelve million Asian-Americans who reported that they were multiracial; in 2004 there were 13.9 million. The groups with the smallest proportion claiming a multiracial heritage in the 2000 census were African-Americans (37.1 million, up slightly to 39.2 million in 2004) and whites (231.4 million, which increased to 239.9 million in 2004). (See Table 2.3.)

Divorce

In 2003 the Census Bureau reported that 21.6 million adults (age fifteen and older) were divorced. In other words, nearly one in ten (9.6%) of all people age fifteen years and older were divorced and had not remarried at the time of the survey—thus, the proportion of ever-divorced people is much higher. A similar proportion of African-Americans, 2.9 million (10.9%), and whites, sixteen million (10.1%), were divorced, while a much lower proportion of Hispanics, 1.9 million (6.7%), and Asian-Americans, 435,000 (4.4%), were divorced. (See Table 2.1.) In Marital Status and Living Arrangements: March 1994 (February 1996, http://www.census.gov/prod/1/pop/p20-484.pdf), Arlene F. Saluter reports that divorce for most groups was up sharply from 1970, when 3.1% of whites, 3.9% of Hispanics, and 4.4% of African-Americans were divorced.

Because men are considerably more likely than women to remarry following divorce, there are significantly higher proportions of currently divorced women than currently divorced men. In 2003, one million (8.7%) African-American men were currently divorced, compared with 1.9 million (12.8%) African-American women; 6.8 million (8.9%) white, non-Hispanic men were divorced, compared with 9.2 million (11.3%) white, non-Hispanic women. Among those of Hispanic origin, 803,000 (5.6%) men and one million (8%) women were divorced. In the Asian and Pacific Islander community, 154,000 (3.3%) men and 282,000 (5.5%) women were divorced. (See Table 2.1.)

Death of a Spouse

In 2003, 13.9 million (6.2%) people age fifteen years and older in the United States were widowed. Across all racial and ethnic groups, more women than men were widowed because of the shorter average lifespan of men, the tendency of wives to be younger than their husbands, and the greater likelihood that men will remarry. This was particularly pronounced in the white and African American communities. More than 8.7 million white women (10.6%) were widowed, compared with only two million (2.7%) white men. A similar proportion of African-American women (1.4 million, 9.4%) were widowed, compared with only 329,000 (2.7%) African-American men. Among Asians and Pacific Islanders, 347,000 (6.8%) women were widowed, compared with 70,000 (1.5%) men. Among Hispanics 735,000 (5.4%) women were widowed, compared with 183,000 (1.3%) men. (See Table 2.1.)

TEENAGE PREGNANCY

Over the generations, a major change in American attitudes has removed much of the social stigma from unwed teenage motherhood. Unmarried women of all ages are having children openly and with a regularity that was unheard of just a few generations ago. Many women do not feel the need to marry when they become pregnant. In 2004, 35.7% of all births were to unmarried mothers. (See Figure 2.2.) However, while the proportion of all births to unmarried mothers has risen, since 1990 the birth rate to unmarried teenagers has decreased. For example, among fifteen- to nineteen-year-olds, the birth rate decreased from about sixty per one thousand women in 1990 to about forty-one births per one thousand women in 2004. (See Figure 2.3.)

Many possible reasons are offered for the high rates of teenage motherhood. Among them are lack of access to birth control, lack of education, and little hope for the future, including absence of educational goals. What is certain is that the health of the babies born to teenagers, and especially to teenagers of a racial or ethnic minority group, is often at risk. According to research conducted by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, African-American teenagers are twice as likely as white teenagers to deliver low-birth-weight babies and 1.5 times more likely to have premature babies. Both low-birth-weight and premature babies experience a number of serious health and developmental problems. In general, babies born to teenage mothers of all races suffer a higher risk of low birth weight, preterm delivery, and infant mortality when compared with babies born to older mothers.

The largest decline in teen birth rates between 1990 and 2004 was among non-Hispanic African-American teens; the birth rate for that group fell from 116.2 to 62.7 births per one thousand females. African-American teens had the highest birth rate in 1990 but had the second-highest birth rate in 2004. The birth rate for Hispanic females ages fifteen to nineteen fell from 100.3 to 82.6 births per one thousand females; these teens had the highest birth rate in 2004. (See Figure 2.4.) According to Brady E. Hamilton et al. in Preliminary Births for 2004 (October 28, 2005, http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/pubs/pubd/hestats/prelim_births/prelim_births04.htm), in 2004 the birth rate for Native American teens ages fifteen to nineteen was 52.5 births per one thousand females, down from 84.1 births per one thousand females in 1991. Non-Hispanic white teens and Asian teens had the lowest birth rates in 2004. The birth rate of non-Hispanic white teens ages fifteen to nineteen was 26.8 per one thousand females in 2004, down from 43.4 per one thousand females in 1991; the birth rate of Asian-American teens ages fifteen to nineteen was 17.4 per thousand females, down from 27.3 per one thousand females in 1991. Hispanic teens had a birth rate more than four times higher than Asian-American teens. (See Table 2.4.)

MINORITY FAMILY STRUCTURE

Married-Couple Families

The Census Bureau defines a family as two or more people living together who are related by birth, marriage, or adoption. A household, however, can be family or nonfamily and is simply all people who occupy a housing unit. The proportion of married-couple families among all households declined from 1970 to 2003. According to Jason Fields in America's Families and Living Arrangements: 2003 (November 2004, http://www.census.gov/prod/2004pubs/p20-553.pdf), 70.6% of all households in 1970 were married couple families; that proportion had dropped to 51.5% by 2003.

Fields reports that the proportion of married-couple families among all family households declined between 1970 and 2003 for all races and ethnicities. In Household and Family Characteristics: March 1994 (September 1995, http://www.census.gov/prod/1/pop/p20-483.pdf), Steve Rawlings and Arlene Saluter report numbers from 1970 and 1980, which here are compared with Fields's numbers from 2003. In 1970, 88.8% of white families were married-couple families, compared with 81.9% in 2003. Asian-Americans also maintained a proportion of married-couple families comparable to that among the white community. In 1980, 84.5% of Asian-American family households were headed by married couples; by 2003 that proportion had decreased to 80.4%. A high proportion of Hispanic families were headed by a married couple in 1970 (80.6%), but by 2003 that proportion had decreased more significantly (to 68.1%) than had the proportion of married-couple families among either whites or Asian-Americans. However, the percentage of married-couple families was the lowest, and had decreased most dramatically, among African-Americans between 1970 and 2003. In 1970, 68.3% of African-American families were married-couple families; by 2003 the rate had dropped to 46.7%.

Single-Parent Households

Single-mother families numbered 3.4 million in 1970, according to Rawlings and Saluter. In 2003 they numbered 10.1 million. (See Table 2.5.) Single-father families increased from less than half a million in 1970 to 2.3 million in 2003. Most single-parent households in the United States continue to be headed by women. The proportion of family households headed by women with no husband present has grown among all racial and ethnic groups.

In 2003 Asian-Americans and whites had the lowest proportion of family households headed by single women. Among Asian-American family households, 337,000 (11.8%) were headed by a female, while 7.1 million (13.1%) white, non-Hispanic family households were headed by a female. (See Table 2.6.)

In 2003 single Hispanic women were almost twice as likely to head households as were white women, while single African-American women were more than three times as likely as white women to head households. (See Table 2.6.) In 1970, 15.3% of Hispanic family households and 27.9% of African-American family households were headed by single women, according to Rawlings and Saluter. By 2003, two million (22.3%) Hispanic family households and four million (44.8%) African-American family households were headed by single women. (See Table 2.6.)

Living Arrangements of Children

Changes in the marital circumstances of adults naturally affect the living arrangements of children. High divorce rates, an increased delay in first marriages, and more out-of-wedlock births have resulted in fewer children living with two parents. In 2003, 49.9 million (68.4%) children under age eighteen were living with two parents (not necessarily both birth parents). (See Table 2.7.) Minority children have been particularly affected by these changes.

Divorced single women are on average older than never-married women, and they tend to have more education and higher incomes as well—leading their children to have an advantage over the children of never-married women. African-American single mothers were the most likely to have never married (1.9 million, 61.6%) and the least likely to be divorced (632,000, 20.2%). Hispanic single mothers were more likely to have never married (850,000, 47%) than to be divorced (394,000, 21.8%), while white single mothers were most likely to be divorced (2.4 million, 48.5%) and least likely to have never married (1.5 million, 30.9%). (See Table 2.5.) As a group, then, the children of white single mothers tend to have an economic advantage over the children of Hispanic or African-American single mothers, while the children of black single mothers, on average, are the most economically disadvantaged of all.

AFRICAN-AMERICAN CHILDREN

In 2003, 4.1 million (36.1%) African-American children under the age of eighteen lived with two parents; 5.7 million (50.8%) lived with their mothers only. A higher proportion of African-American children lived with neither parent (967,000, 8.5%) than lived with their fathers only (517,000, 4.6%). (See Table 2.7.) The Census Bureau (June 29, 2005, http://www.census.gov/population/soc-demo/hh-fam/ch3.pdf) reports that in 1970 the proportions of African-American children who lived with one parent (31.7%) or two parents (58.6%) were virtually the reverse of their living arrangements in 2003.

An increasing number of African-American children live with neither parent. A disproportionate number of them are in foster care. In the AFCARS Report (April 2005, http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/stats_research/afcars/tar/report10.pdf), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that on September 30, 2003, 35% of children in foster care were African-American. According to the Census Bureau in "National Population Estimates—Characteristics" (2005, http://www.census.gov/popest/national/asrh/), if the number of African-American children in foster care reflected their proportion in the general population, only 16.9% of children in foster care would be African-American.

HISPANIC CHILDREN

In 2003 a higher proportion of Hispanic children (8.6 million, 64.6%) than African-American children were living with two parents, but this proportion was still lower than the proportion of white children who lived with two parents (33.8 million, 77.3%). (See Table 2.7.) More than 6.9 million (24.5%) Hispanic children lived with a single mother, and 737,000 (5.5%) lived with a single father. This proportion was considerably higher than among whites—6.9 million (15.8%) white children lived with a single mother and 1.9 million (4.3%) lived with a single father—but well below the proportion of African-American children living with a single parent. Approximately 702,000 (5.3%) Hispanic children lived with neither parent.

ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER CHILDREN

The Asian-American family is typically a close-knit unit, and members traditionally are respectful of the authority of the elder members of the family. As the younger generation becomes more assimilated into American culture, however, the unchallenged role of elders may not remain as strong. Even so, family tradition and honor are still held in high regard. In 2003, 2.2 million (83.1%) children of Asian and Pacific Islander descent were living with both parents, a proportion higher than that of whites. About 291,000 (10.8%) Asian and Pacific Islander children lived with their mothers only, while 76,000 (2.8%) lived with their fathers only. Approximately 87,000 (3.2%) lived with neither parent. (See Table 2.7.)

HOUSING GRANDCHILDREN

Because of many factors, including the high cost of housing, substance abuse, and the inability of some parents to care for their children, many children are living with their grandparents. It is not uncommon in the African-American community for children to live with their grandparents, with or without one or both of their parents present. In 2003, 517,000 (4.6%) African-American children lived with a grandparent and neither of their parents. The proportion of children who lived with a grandparent is significantly higher when children who lived with one or both parents in the home of a grandparent are added to that total (1.1 million, 9.8%). (See Table 2.7.) In other words, nearly one in ten African-American children were living in the home of a grandparent in 2003, and nearly one in twenty were being raised exclusively by a grandparent.

Only 241,000 (1.8%) Hispanic children lived with a grandparent with neither parent present in 2003. This number jumps to 819,000 (6.2%) when children who live with one or both parents in the home of a grandparent are added. Among Asians and Pacific Islanders, 23,000 (0.8%) children under the age of eighteen lived with a grandparent and neither parent in 2003. This number climbs to 66,000 (2.5%) when children who lived with one or both parents in the home of a grandparent are counted. Among whites, only 574,000 (1.3%) children lived with a grandparent and neither parent in 2003; 1.6 million (3.6%) white children lived with a grandparent with or without a parent present. (See Table 2.7.) African-American children, then, were the most likely to be living with a grandparent, with or without a parent present, while Asian-American children were the least likely.

HOMEOWNERSHIP

Owning one's home has traditionally been the American dream. Unfortunately, for many Americans, especially minorities, purchasing a home can be difficult or impossible. The Housing Vacancy Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau calculated homeownership rates by race and ethnicity of householder (the rate was computed by dividing the number of owner households by the total number of households). In 2004 the rate for non-Hispanic white householders who owned their homes was 76, while for Hispanic householders it was 48.1, for African-American householders it was 49.1, for Native American or Alaska Native householders it was 55.6, and for Asian and Pacific Islander householders it was 59.8. (See Table 2.8.)

Growth of Homeownership

While compared with non-Hispanic white homeownership the numbers of minority homeownership are low, these numbers actually reflect significant growth in the purchase of homes by minorities. While homeownership rates rose for all groups, they rose faster among minority groups. From 1994 to 2004 the homeownership rate for non-Hispanic whites grew from 70 to 76, for Hispanics it grew from 41.2 to 48.1, and for African-Americans it grew from 42.3 to 49.1. During this same period the homeownership rate by Asians and Pacific Islanders grew from 51.3 to 59.8. (See Table 2.8.)

A number of factors were responsible for the growth of minority homeownership in the 1990s. The administration of President Bill Clinton helped to provide greater lending opportunities for minorities by revitalizing the Federal Housing Administration and improving enforcement of the Community Reinvestment Act, which was passed by Congress in 1977 to encourage banks and other lending institutions to invest in the communities in which they operate. Furthermore, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development pressured the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) to initiate programs to help minority and low-income borrowers in securing mortgages. Fannie Mae is a private company that was created by Congress in 1938 to improve the housing industry during the Great Depression. Its smaller counterpart, Freddie Mac, is a shareholder-owned company created by Congress in 1970 to support homeownership. Both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buy mortgages, package them into bonds backed by the government, and sell them to investors, thereby freeing up money for additional mortgage lending. Besides these efforts, minority homeownership was also helped by a considerably strong economy and a robust stock market during the 1990s and by low mortgage rates during the early 2000s.

President George W. Bush also made minority home-ownership a priority of his administration. In 2002 he challenged the real estate industry to invest more than $1 trillion to increase the number of minority homeowners by at least 5.5 million families by the end of the decade. Acknowledging that many Americans can afford a monthly mortgage payment but lack the funds for a down payment, in 2003 President Bush signed the American Dream Downpayment Assistance Act, authorizing $200 million per year in down payment assistance to at least forty thousand low-income families. In January 2004 Fannie Mae announced that it planned to help 1.8 million minority families buy their first home in the next decade.

Private-sector real estate lenders were likely to follow suit in targeting minorities, in part as a simple acknowledgment of changing times. As the baby boomer generation (1946–64) begins to leave the workforce, and because of the low birth rate of native-born Americans, minority groups (dominated by Hispanics) are expected to play an increasing role in the economy. The 1990s saw a major influx of immigrants, who at first typically rented their homes but later became factors in the home-buying market. According to James Johnson, who is quoted in John Handley's "Demographic Trends to Shape Future U.S. Housing Markets" (February 2005, http://www.ris-media.com/index.php/article/articleview/9392/1/632/realtorsontherise), it is estimated that ten million immigrants will reach their peak home-buying years between 2005 and 2015, making them a market to be courted by real estate lenders. Aside from the benefits enjoyed by the individual, an increase in the number of minority homeowners is likely to improve the quality of life in entire communities, improving such areas as safety and the quality of schools.