The Diverse Face of Asians and Pacific Islanders in California

8/6/2019 The Diverse Face of Asians and Pacific Islanders in California

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A S I A N & P A C I F I C I S L A N D E R D E M O G R A P H I C P R O F I L E

of Asians and Pacific Islanders in California

the diverse face


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Contents

Asian Pacific American LegalCenter of Southern CaliforniaPrincipal researcher The Asian Pacific American Legal Centerof Southern California (APALC) wasfounded in 1983 and is the largest organ-ization in the country focused on provid-ing multilingual, culturally sensitive legalservices, education, and civil rights sup-

port to Asians and Pacific Islanders (APIs). APALCs mission is to advocate for civilrights, provide legal services and educa-tion, and build coalitions to positively influence and impact Asians and PacificIslanders and to create a more equitableand harmonious society. APALC works ona range of issues affecting APIs and immi-grants, including workers rights, con-sumer rights, immigration, citizenship,domestic violence, hate crimes, healthcare, language access, and voting rights.

Asian Law CaucusFounded in 1972, the Asian Law Caucus(ALC) was the nations first nonprofit law office serving Asians and PacificIslanders. ALCs mission is to promote,advance, and represent the legal and civilrights of the Asian and Pacific Islandercommunity in Northern California.

Annually, the Asian Law Caucus consults with and oversees cases of over 1,500

clients and provides legal information toover 5,000 people on workers rightsimmigration, housing issues, votingrights, and hate crimes.

National Asian Pacific AmericanLegal ConsortiumThe National Asian Pacific AmericanLegal Consortium (NAPALC) was

founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Washington, DC. NAPALC works toadvance the human and civil rights of

Asian Americans through advocacy, public policy, public education, and litiga-tion. NAPALC is one of the nationsleading experts on issues of importancto the Asian American communityincluding: affirmative action, anti-Asianviolence prevention/race relations, census, immigrant rights, immigration, lan-guage access, and voting rights.

Asian Pacific American Legal Center oSouthern California in Los Angeles andthe Asian Law Caucus in San Franciscoare affiliated with the National AsianPacific American Legal Consortium.

Permission to reproduce materials from thisreport is granted with attribution to: AsianPacific American Legal Center, 2005.

Welcome 1Key Findings 2California Profile 3-12

Race & Ethnicity 4Concentration 5Social Characteristics 6Education 7Income 8Poverty 9Language 10Immigration & Citizenship 12Health 12

Bay Area Profile 13-22Race & Ethnicity 14Concentration 15Social Characteristics 16Education 17Income 18Poverty 19Language 20Immigration & Citizenship 22Health 22

Central Valley Profile 23-32Race & Ethnicity 24

Concentration 25Social Characteristics 26Education 27Income 28Poverty 29Language 30Immigration & Citizenship 32Health 32

Southern California Profile 33-42Race & Ethnicity 34Concentration 35Social Characteristics 36

Education 37Income 38Poverty 39Language 40Immigration & Citizenship 42Health 42

Conclusion 43Glossary 44Technical Notes 45

Appendices 46Order Form 56


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California remains the heart of Asian and

Pacific Islander America. More than one-third of all Asians and Pacific Islanders (APIs) in the nationlive in California, and 2003 Census estimatesshow the continued growth and diversity of thestates Asian and Pacific Islander community.

While Asians and Pacific Islanders are often thought of as ahomogenous group, the reality is that our communities repre-sent dozens of ethnic groups, cultures, and languages. Whilegroups like Cambodians, Filipinos, Bangladeshi, Koreans, andTongans share many common issues and values, they are differ-ent from one another in many ways.

With The Diverse Face of Asians and Pacific Islanders inCalifornia, we hope to convey the rich diversity and multiple

layers of API communities in three major regions in California.This report studies indicators such as race and ethnicity, hous-ing, language, health, income, poverty, and education in the Bay

Area, Central Valley, and Southern California regions.

Disaggregated data are a critical tool to illustrate commoissues, as well as individual challenges of specific groups. Tprofile provides data for the API population as a whole, and separately for more than 20 individual API ethnic groupsCollectively, the data reveal great social and economic diversi

within the API population.

To highlight and respond to these issues, Asian Pacific AmericaLegal Center (APALC) works to make demographic information available that accurately reflects the realities of the growin

API population. Through data collection, analysis, and mapping, APALC compiles demographic information that is criticato effective program planning, service delivery, and advocac

We hope that the analysis and recommendations presented inthis report will serve as the impetus for positive change for APcommunities in California.

I would like to extend my thanks to the funders, sponsors, and

community organizations throughout the state whose suppormade this report and its launch possible. I am also proud of thesponsorship of this report with the National Asian Pacifi

American Legal Consortium and the Asian Law Caucus.

WelcomeStewart Kwoh

President & Executive Director, Asian Pacific American Legal Center

Regional DefinitionsThe state of California and three regions are studied in thisreport. The counties within each region are listed below.

Bay Area : Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, SanFrancisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and SonomaCounties.Central Valley: Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced,Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare Counties.Southern California: Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange,Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Ventura Counties.

Detailed TablesFull tables capturing data discussed in the body of this reportfor major racial and ethnic groups and over 20 API ethnicgroups can be found in its Appendix.

Appendix A: Detailed population counts and growth (1990to 2000) by race and ethnicity.

Appendix B: Population characteristics (e.g. education,poverty, and language) by race and ethnicity.

Appendix C: Asian and Pacific Islander population countsby county.

ASIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDER DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN LEGAL CENTER


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2

Key Findings Asians and Pacific Islanders are among the fastestgrowing racial and ethnic groups in the state.

Asians are now the second largest major racial or ethnic group ifour counties and the majority of the population in eight citiesacross the state. From 1990 to 2000, the Asian population grewas much as 52%, followed by Latinos, who grew 43%. This icompared to the states total population growth of 14%. From2000 to 2003, Asians had the fastest growth rate among themajor races in the Bay Area (9%) and Pacific Islanders had thfastest growth rate in the Central Valley (24%) and SouthernCalifornia (14%) regions.

Asian communities experience language barriers atalarmingly high rates. Asian households have the highest levels of linguistic isolation the state. Overall, more than a third of Asians and more than afifth of Asian children experience limited English proficiencNearly a majority of Chinese, the states largest Asian group, alimited English proficient. Six Asian ethnic groups have majorty limited English proficient populations, including two of thestates five largest Asian groups, Vietnamese and Korean.

Asians and Pacific Islanders as a whole fall belowaverage on a number of indicators of well-being.

Contrary to the popular model minority image, Asians andPacific Islanders are not doing well on all fronts. APIs fare worthan average on a number of important measures of socioeconomic status. APIs overall have lower than average homeowneship rates and per capita incomes. APIs also have higher thaaverage rates of overcrowded housing, three or more workers pfamily, and of receiving public assistance income or welfarPacific Islanders have college graduation rates far below avera

Disaggregated data for Asian and Pacific Islander eth-nic groups reveal great disparities in socioeconomicstatus, with many groups among the most povertystricken and least educated.The more than 20 Asian and Pacific Islander ethnic groups studiedin this report cover a wide spectrum of socioeconomic statuse

While overall data show APIs doing better than average in education, poverty, and median household income, data separated by

API ethnic group reveal many groups faring among the worse ithe state. Laotians, Cambodians, and Hmong have poverty rateshigher than that of any of the major racial or ethnic groupsVietnamese and Tongans have below average rates of high schocompletion. Koreans have below average median householincomes.

Alone and InclusiveFor the first time, the 2000 censusallowed people to report membershipin more than one racial group. A unique feature of this report is thepresentation of data for both singlerace and multiracial populations.Throughout the report, the termalone refers to persons reporting asingle race only, while the terminclusive refers to the single raceand multiracial population combinedfor a given group. (See TechnicalNote on page 45 for a more detailedexplanation of these terms. Othercensus terminology is defined in theGlossary on page 44.) Figures for allracial and ethnic groups are given forthe inclusive population, not exclusiveof Latino/Hispanic, except for white,

which is single race, non-Hispanic.



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Introduction to CaliforniaThe Asian and Pacific Islander populationin California is large and growing. The

API population is projected to more thandouble from 4 to 9 million peoplebetween 2000 to 2025. Asians havealready surpassed Latinos in the Bay Areto become the second largest racial oethnic group in 2000. There are ninecommunities in California that are major-ity Asian and 17 more places that are athird or more Asian. As this growth con-tinues in the years to come, the needs of

this diverse community will also requirgreater attention.

Table 1. 2003 Census Population EstimatesCalifornia Major Racial and Ethnic Groups

Major Races California State Bay Area Central Valley Southern CaliforniaWhite 16,042,869 45% 3,309,758 48% 2,301,818 47% 8,117,837 40%Latino/Hispanic 12,176,087 34% 1,407,511 21% 1,762,514 36% 8,241,908 41%

Asian 4,563,499 13% 1,548,543 23% 461,723 9% 2,391,843 12% African American 2,679,687 8% 569,858 8% 371,241 8% 1,659,082 8% American Indian 683,922 2% 104,452 2% 128,176 3% 345,371 2%Pacific Islander 245,934 1% 67,772 1% 36,575 1% 127,346 1%

Two or more races 830,490 2% 203,898 3% 136,226 3% 407,191 3% TOTAL 35,484,453 100% 6,846,466 100% 4,913,508 100% 20,342,848 100%

Note: All figures ranked by the California state population numbers. All figures are for the inclusive population, which is single race and multirace combined, except for two or more races and white which is single race only. Figures are not exclusive of Latino/Hispanic, except for white which is non-Hispanic. Figures do not add up to 100% due tooverlap in categories. Source: Population Estimates Branch, U.S. Bureau of the Census, July1, 2003.

Percent of Populationthat is Asian andPacific Islander, 2000 t

0 4 8 12 16 20

Year 2000

Year 2005

Year 2015

Year 2025 18%

17%

15%

13%

Figure 1: Asian and Pacific Islander Population in California

Population Projections, 2000 to 2025

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Population Division



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4 ASIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDER DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN LEGAL CENTER

CaliforniaRace & Ethnicity Asians

> Asians grew from 9% to 12% of thestates population from 1990 to 2000,an increase of more than a million per-sons. Census Bureau estimates for2003 show Asians now make up 13%of the population.

> Chinese and Filipinos are the two largest Asian groups and together make upmore than half of the Asian population.

> Vietnamese have risen from fourthlargest API group in 1990 to third

largest in 2000.> Asian Indians are the fastest growinggroup, doubling in size from 1990to 2000.

> The Bay Area has the highest concen-tration of Asians in the state. The Bay

Area is now 23% Asian, according to2003 estimates.

Pacific Islanders> Pacific Islanders have increased from

0.4% of the states population in 1990to 0.7% of the population in 2003using inclusive figures.

> Pacific Islander growth from 1990 to2000 ranged from 6% using 2000 sin-gle race numbers to 100% using 2000inclusive numbers (single race andmultiracial figures combined). This

wide range results from a large numberof multiracial Pacific Islanders.

>

Nearly half (47%) of Pacific Islandersare multiracial, the highest among allracial/ethnic groups.

> Native Hawaiians and Samoans con-tinue to be the states largest PacificIslander groups, followed closely by Guamanians/Chamorros.

Geographic Distribution> Asian and Pacific Islander ethn

groups are concentrated in certainparts of the state. Eighty percent ofHmong live in the Central Valley,

while 80% of Taiwanese live iSouthern California. Asian Indians arefound in greater numbers in the Bay

Area, and the Central Valley is hometo more of Laotians. More than three-quarters of Koreans are found inSouthern California.

>

A majority of Tongans and Fijians live inthe Bay Area, while Samoans reside diproportionately in Southern California.

> The Bay Areas four largest groups (idescending order of size) are ChineseFilipino, Vietnamese, and AsianIndian, making up 84% of the regions

Asian population.> The Central Valleys four largest group

are Filipino, Hmong, Chinese, and Asian Indian, making up 65% of Asians.

> Southern Californias four largest group

are Filipino, Chinese, Vietnamese, andKorean, making up 75% of Asians.

1990 to 2000 Alone

1990 to 2000 Inclusive

-10 7 24 41 58 75 92 109 126 143 160

White

African American

Pacific Islander

Latino

Asian

American Indian38%

159%

35%

52%

33%

43%

6%

100%

2%14%

-7%

-3%

Figure 2: Population Growth Rate, 1990 to 2000

Major Racial and Ethnic Groups in California

Eighty percent of Hmong

live in the Central Valley,

77% of Koreans live

in Southern California,

and 53% of Tongans live

in the Bay Area.

Note: Ranked by 1990 to 2000 alone


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CaliforniaConcentrationCounties with the Highest Concentration> There are four counties in the state where the Asian popula-

tion is larger than the Latino population: San Francisco,Santa Clara, Alameda, and San Mateo.

> Los Angeles County is home to more than 1.3 million Asiansby 2003 estimates, the largest population in one county in thestate. Santa Clara County has the second largest population

with more than half a million Asians.> San Francisco County has the highest proportion of Asians

with 33%. Santa Clara County has the second highestproportion with 30%.

> The highest concentration of Pacific Islanders is found in

San Mateo County with 1.9%, followed by Solano County with 1.6%.

Places with the Highest Concentrations> In 1990, Monterey Park was the only majority Asian city in

the continental United States. In 2000, eight new places thatare majority Asian appeared in California. Seven places inSouthern California and two places in the Bay Area are now a majority Asian (see Table 2).

> The population in 17 places in California is a third or more Asian, including Sunnyvale, Fremont, and San Francisco.

> East Palo Alto has by far the highest percentage of Pacific

Islanders, 9%, followed by Carson with 4%.

API Ethnic Group Concentrations> One out of five San Francisco County residents is Chinese.> The counties with the highest percentages of Filipinos are

Solano (11%) and San Mateo (9%).> The highest percentages of Vietnamese are in Santa Clara

County (6%) and Orange County (5%).> Japanese are fairly evenly distributed with the highest per-

centages found in Santa Clara, San Francisco, and San MateoCounties (2% each).

> More than 67% of Koreans are found in two counties:Orange and Los Angeles.

> The highest percentages of Asian Indians are in SutterCounty (10%) and Santa Clara County (4%).

> More than half of Samoans live in Los Angeles, San Diego,and Orange Counties, while more than half of Fijians live inSacramento, Alameda, and San Mateo Counties.

Table 2: Asian Population Concentration in CaliforniaPlaces in California With the Highest Percentage of Asians, 2000

California State Places Number PercentMonterey Park city 38,205 64%Cerritos city 31,263 61%Walnut city 17,310 58%Milpitas city 34,070 54%Daly City city 55,495 54%Rowland Heights CDP* 25,400 52%San Gabriel city 20,083 50%San Marino city 6,515 50%Rosemead city 26,772 50%

Alhambra city 41,870 49%

Arcadia city 25,026 47%Union City city 31,371 47%La Palma city 7,204 47%Cupertino city 23,406 46%Hercules city 8,848 45%South San Gabriel CDP* 3,423 45%Diamond Bar city 25,217 45%East San Gabriel CDP* 6,176 43%

Temple City city 13,457 40%Fremont city 80,979 40%Note: Ranked by percent Asian. *Census designated place.

Table 3: Pacific Islander Population Concentration in CaliforniaPlaces in California With the Largest Number of Pacific Islanders, 2000

California State Places Number Percent

Los Angeles city 13,144 0.4%San Diego city 10,613 0.9%Long Beach city 7,863 1.7%San Jose city 7,091 0.8%Sacramento city 6,833 1.7%San Francisco city 6,273 0.8%Hayward city 4,709 3.4%Carson city 3,401 3.8%Oakland city 3,218 0.8%

Oceanside city 3,057 1.9%East Palo Alto city 2,536 8.6%Stockton city 2,437 1.0%

Vallejo city 2,358 2.0% Anaheim city 2,356 0.7%Modesto city 2,234 1.2%San Mateo city 2,222 2.4%Note: Ranked by number Pacific Islander. Communities with Pacific Islander

population of 2,000 or more across the state of California.


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Age> The median age for Asians as a whole is

nearly identical to the state average of 33,but Pacific Islanders fall far below thestate average with a median age of 26.

> While the Asian median age is close tothe state average, many Asian groupsfall below average. Sixteen APIgroups fall below the state median age,eight groups have a median age below 30, and five groups have a median agelower than any of the major racial

groups.> Just over a quarter of the Asian popu-lation is under the age of 18, compara-ble to the state average. A third of Pacific Islanders are children.

> Ten API ethnic groups have dispropor-tionately large numbers of children. A majority of the Hmong population isunder 18.

> Nine percent of Asians are 65 years orolder, again close to the state average. Yetonly 5% of Pacific Islanders are seniors.

> The percent of Japanese that are 65or older (16%) is far above the stateaverage. All but four other API groupsfall below the state average for percentsenior population.

Housing> Both Asians and Pacific Islanders have

larger than average household sizes,3.2 and 3.5 respectively, compared to2.9 for the state.

> All but four API groups have averagehousehold sizes above the state aver-age, and five groups have rates aboveall major race groups.

> Asians and Pacific Islanders both haveovercrowded housing rates far aboveaverage. A quarter of the population in

each group live in overcrowded hous-ing, and 14% live in severely overcrowded housing.

Overcrowded

Severely Overcrowded

42%28%

26%14%

24%14%

17%9%

13%6%

4%2%

15%9%

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45

California

White

Black

American Indian

Asian

Pacific Islander

Latino/Hispanic

Figure 3: Overcrowded Housing RatesMajor Racial and Ethnic Groups in California, 2000

Note: Overcrowded housing is defined as having more than one person per room.Severely overcrowded housing is defined as more than 1.5 people per room.

> Eighteen API groups have above average overcrowded housing rates and sixgroups have rates higher than anyother major racial group. A majorityof four groups live in overcrowdedhousing and a majority of Hmonghouseholds are severely overcrowded.

> Asians and Pacific Islanders have belowaverage rates of homeownership

Asians (55%) have rates close to average, while Pacific Islanders (47%) hav

rates below the state average of 57%.> Only four API groups have above average homeownership rates. Koreans, thefifth largest group, and five othergroups have rates below that of anyother racial group.

CaliforniaSocial Characteristics

Eighteen API groups

have above average

overcrowded housing rates,

and six groups have rateshigher than any

other major racial group.


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CaliforniaEducationEducation> Asians are more likely than whites to have

graduated college (41% versus 34%), butalso more likely to have less than highschool education (19% versus 10%).

> Twenty-two percent of Pacific Islandershave not completed high school, andonly 17% have a college degree.

> Four Southeast Asian groupsVietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, andHmonghave educational levels farbelow average, some among the lowest

in the state.

High School Completion> Six API groups have below average

rates of high school completion. Morethan a third of Fijians, Vietnamese, andTongans do not have high schooldegrees.

> Three API groups have rates higher thanany other racial group. More than half of Cambodians, Laotians, and Hmonghave not graduated from high school.

College Graduation> Nine API groups have lower than aver

age rates of attaining a college degreeand three groups have rates lower thanany other racial group.

> All four Pacific Islander groups havbelow average rates of attaining a college degree. Only 10% of Samoanshave a bachelors degree or higher.

Less than High School High School Associates Degree Bachelors Degree Advanced Degree

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Japanese

Korean

Filipino

Hawaiian

Asian Indian

Pakistani

Thai

Guamanian

Chinese

Samoan

Fijian

Vietnamese

Tongan

Cambodian

Laotian

Hmong 66%

58%

56%

38%

36%

34%

23%

22%

20%

19%

18%

16%

14%

12%

12%

7% 40% 11% 30% 13%

36% 7% 32% 13%

38% 9% 35% 6%

57% 9% 15% 6%

20% 4% 29% 30%

23% 6% 31% 22%

31% 12% 25% 13%

59% 8% 11% 3

25% 7% 27% 19%

59% 8% 7% 2

51% 7% 7% 2

34% 9% 16% 5%

51% 4% 6% 1

30% 6% 7% 2

30% 6% 5% 1

23% 5% 5% 2

Figure 4: Educational Attainment Asian & Pacific Islander Groups in California, 2000

Note: All education figures are for the population 25 years and older. Groups ranked by Less than High School.


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CaliforniaIncomeMedian Household Income> Both Asians and Pacific Islanders as a whole have above aver-

age median household incomes.> Ten API groups have median household incomes below the

state median, and three groups have medians lower than any other racial group.

Per Capita IncomePer capita income is the income available per individual in a popu-lation, rather than for an entire household. Because API households are larger on average, per capita income is a better measure of anethnic groups overall well-being.

> In contrast to median household income, both Asians andPacific Islanders have below average per capita incomes.

> Fifteen API groups have per capita incomes below the stataverage, and five groups are below any other racial group.

> Filipinos show a median household income of $61,237, faabove average, but fall far below average for per capita incom($19,223). One explanation for this is the high rate of threeor more workers in Filipino families. More than a quarter oFilipino families have three or more workers, compared tonly 14% for the state overall.

Public Assistance Income> Asians and Pacific Islanders have above average rates of receivpublic assistance income.

> Seven API groups have above average rates of receiving pulic assistance income, and four refugee Asian groups havrates above all other racial groups. Fifteen percent oVietnamese, the third largest API group, receive public assitance. More than a third of Cambodians and half of Hmongreceive public assistance.

> Samoans, Tongans, and Guamanians also have above averagrates of receiving public assistance.

0 5 10 15 20 25

California

Black

White

American Indian

Asian

Pacific Islander

Latino/Hispanic 20%

20%

18%

14%

10%

9%

14%

Figure 5: Families with Three or More WorkersMajor Racial and Ethnic Groups in California, 2000

Southeast Asian refugee groups

Four Southeast Asian refugee groups

Cambodians, Hmong, Laotians, and

Vietnamesehave the highest rates of

receiving public assistance income in the

state among the major racial and ethnic

groups. Years of U.S. military intervention in

Southeast Asia created millions of refugees in

the region. The Refugee Act of 1980 requires

states to provide social services to refugees.

With agrarian backgrounds, little or no formal

education, and little or no ability to speak

English, many Southeast Asian refugeesbegin their lives in the U.S. dependent on

public assistance. In the 30 years since the

arrival of the first wave of refugees, these

communities have experienced

improvements, but still remain among the

most disadvantaged groups.


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CaliforniaPovertyBelow the Federal Poverty Line> Asians (13%) and Pacific Islanders

(14%) both have poverty rates muchhigher than those of whites (8%).

> Eleven API groups have poverty ratesabove the state average and threegroups have poverty rates higher thanany other major racial or ethnic group.

> More than 50% of Hmong, more thana third of Cambodians, and nearly athird of Laotians are in poverty.

> Asians and Pacific Islanders have aver-

age poverty rates in the Bay Area and inSouthern California. In the CentralValley, both groups have above averagerates of poverty.

Child Poverty> The Asian child poverty rate (15%) is

much higher than that of whites (9%).> The Pacific Islander child poverty rate

(20%) is more than twice that of whites(9%).

> Eight API groups have child poverty

rates above average, and three groupshave child poverty rates above any other racial group.

> Hmong (60%), Cambodian (50%),and Laotian (40%) children have thehighest poverty rates in the state.

> Vietnamese, Samoan, Pakistani,Tongan, and Bangladeshi all haveabove average child poverty rates.More than a fifth of the children inthese groups live in poverty.

> Nearly half of Asian children in FresnoCounty are in poverty. More than athird of Asian children in San JoaquinCounty and 28% in SacramentoCounty are in poverty.

> More than a third of Pacific Islanderchildren in Fresno and MercedCounties are in poverty.

Below 200% of PovertyBecause the federal poverty level is not adjusted for local costs of living, a multiple of the poverty line is often used to better identify low-income populations. Using

200% of poverty doubles the poverty level to $34,058 for a family of four.> A third or more of the populations of

13 API groups are living below 200%of the federal poverty line.

> Pacific Islander groups have among thehighest rates of 200% of poverty:

Samoans (45%), Tongans (44%), andFijians (34%).

Figure 6: Poverty Rates, Groups Above Average Asian & Pacific Islander Groups in California, 2000

In Poverty

Child Poverty

53%60%

50%

40%

23%

21%

21%

19%

19%

13%

24%

40%

32%

20%

20%

18%

18%

18%

17%

15%

14%

15%

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

California

Bangladeshi

Indonesian

Thai

Tongan

Vietnamese

Pakistani

Samoan

Laotian

Cambodian

Hmong

Places with the Highest APIPoverty Rates> Among cities with a minimum 10,000

Asian population, Fresno, StocktonModesto, Sacramento, and Rosemeadhave the poorest Asian populations in thestate, all with nearly a third or more chil-dren in poverty, half or more at 200% of poverty, and a quarter or more livingbelow poverty. Other cities that approachthese levels of poverty are Long BeacOakland, and El Monte. Also in the top

ten list for overall Asian poverty are thcities of Davis, Berkeley, and Riverside.> The highest Pacific Islander poverty i

found in the city of Compton, where amajority are in poverty and 63% ofchildren are in poverty. A majority ofthe Pacific Islander population inLynwood and a majority of the childrenin Ontario are in poverty.


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CaliforniaLanguage

> Asian and Pacific Islander rates of LEPare similar across the three regions,except for children in the CentralValley where rates drop to less than half the state average for both groups.

> San Francisco County has a majority LEP Asian population, the highestamong the ten counties with the largest

Asian populations.> Orange and Los Angeles Counties are

also among those with the highest Asian

LEP rates, 45% and 43% respectively.Half a million Asians in Los AngelesCounty are limited English proficient.

> Pacific Islander rates are highest inMerced and Stanislaus Counties whereone in four are limited English proficient.

> The majority of Asians in twelve of the50 cities with the largest Asian popula-tions are limited English proficient.Nine of the twelve cities are inSouthern California.

> The cities of San Francisco andOakland have majority LEP Asian pop-ulations.

> In the Central Valley, the majority of Asians in the cities of Fresno anMerced are LEP.

Child Limited English ProficiencyChildren age 17 years and younger wspeak English less than very well are csidered limited English proficient.

> More than one in five Asian childrenare limited English proficient (LEP).

> Ten percent of Pacific Islander childrenare LEP.

> The cities of San Francisco andOakland have child LEP rates of 30%and 41%, respectively.

> A majority of Asian children in Mercedand 45% in Fresno are LEP.

40 45 50 55 60 65

Korean

Laotian

Cambodian

Taiwanese

Hmong

Vietnamese 62%

61%

58%

56%

55%

52%

Figure 7: Limited English Proficiency Asian Groups in California, 2000

The largest Asian group,

Chinese, is nearly majority limited English

proficient, with 48% speaking

English less than very well. Six other Asian

groups are a majority LEP, including

Vietnamese and Koreans.

Limited English Proficiency (LEP)Persons who speak English less thanvery well are considered limited English

proficient.

> More than one-third of the Asian pop-ulation in California is limited Englishproficient.

> Pacific Islanders have the third highestlevel of limited English proficiency among the major racial or ethnicgroups (15%).

>

Six Asian groups, including two of thefive largest groups (Vietnamese andKorean), have populations that aremajority limited English proficient.

> The largest Asian group, Chinese, isnearly majority LEP, with 48% speak-ing English less than very well.

> Nearly a third or more of six addition-al groups are LEP, and one in fourPakistanis, Fijians, and Asian Indiansare LEP.

> More than one in five Filipinos, the

second largest group, are LEP.


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Linguistic IsolationHouseholds in which all members 14 years old or older speak English less than very well are considered linguistically isolated.

> Asian households have the highest lev-els of linguistic isolation in the state.

> Pacific Islanders have the third highestlevel of linguistic isolation, (7%).

> Six API groups are a third or more lin-guistically isolated, and four moregroups have linguistic isolation rates of

24% or more.> In all three regions, Asians have thehighest linguistic isolation rates, thehighest being in Southern California

with 28%.> San Francisco County has the second

highest Asian linguistic isolation rate of all counties, 35%. Los Angeles andOrange Counties are among the topten counties with the highest Asian lin-guistic isolation rates, with 30% and39% respectively.

> The county with the second largest Asian population, Santa Clara, has an Asian linguistic isolation rate of 25%.

> Asian linguistic isolation is found atextremely high rates in many cities withlarge Asian populations in SouthernCalifornia. El Monte tops the list with50% household linguistic isolation fol-lowed by Rosemead (49%), San Gabriel(48%), and Garden Grove (48%).

> Oakland and San Francisco city alsohave high rates of Asian linguistic isola-tion, with 42% and 35% respectively.

Table 4: Linguistically Isolated Asian HouseholdsTop Places in California, 2000

California Places Number PercentEl Monte city 2,757 50%Rosemead city 3,104 49%San Gabriel city 2,705 48%Garden Grove city 6,151 48%

Alhambra city 6,117 46%Westminster city 3,781 44%Monterey Park city 5,239 44%Oakland city 8,823 42%Santa Ana city 3,183 40%Rowland Heights CDP 2,927 39%

Arcadia city 2,775 37%Hacienda Heights CDP 2,177 37%San Francisco city 29,041 35%

Among places with an Asian Inclusive population of 5,000 or more

The Commission on Asian Pacific Islander American Affairs

The Commission on Asian Pacific Islander

American Affairs is a state commission

established in 2002 to help the governor and

state legislature, agencies, departments, and

commissions better understand and respond

to Californias fastest growing major racial

group. In the two short years since its

inception, the 13 member commission has

provided important guidance on issues

impacting Asians and Pacific Islanders,

including language access, hate crimes, and

the recent resettlement of Hmong refugees in

California.Source: Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus.


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CaliforniaImmigration & Citizenship

> Pacific Islanders lack health insurance at a higher rate thanaverage in California, 19% compared to 16% for the state.

Approximately 14% of Asians and 5% of Asian children areuninsured, rates which are both higher than those of African

Americans or whites.> There is a great disparity of health insurance coverage among

Asian ethnic groups. Koreans have the highest rates of Asians who lack health insurance, 35% overall and 24% for Koreanchildren. Koreans have uninsurance rates higher than any major racial or ethnic group.

> Health insurance coverage also varies by citizenship. Only 7%of U.S. born Asians lack health insurance, compared to 24%of Asian non-citizens. This disparity is also reflected among

Asian children, where 3% of U.S. born children lack healthinsurance, compared to 18% of non-citizen Asian children.

Immigration> Asians have the highest rates of being foreign-born in th

state, 62% compared to 44% for Latinos. Among adults age18 and over, 78% of Asians are foreign-born.

> Asian youth, age 0-17, comprise much lower rates of beinforeign-born (18%), although this is still the highest rate inthe state.

> Pacific Islanders have a foreign-born rate lower than Asianbut still have the third highest rate at 25%.

> The majority of all Asian groups, except for Japanese, are foreiborn. Among Pacific Islanders, more than three-quarters oFijians and nearly a majority (48%) of Tongans are foreign born

>

Fifty-two out of 58 counties in California have a majorityforeign-born Asian adult population.> The majority of Pacific Islanders in five cities are foreign

born: Davis, San Bruno, East Palo Alto, Lynwood, andSacramento.

Citizenship> A majority of foreign-born Asians are naturalized citizen

compared to 26% of foreign-born Latinos.> More than half of the foreign-born of six API groups are nat

uralized citizens, including the three largest groups, ChineseFilipinos, and Vietnamese.

0 17 34 51 68 85

Adult 18 and over

Child 0-17

78%

61%

Asian

Latino/Hispanic18%

14%

0 6 12 18 24 30

U.S. born citizen

Non-citizen

3%

7%Child, Age 0-17

Total, Age 0-65

18%

24%

CaliforniaHealth

Figure 8: Foreign-Born Rates, Child and Adult Asians and Latinos in California, 2000

Figure 9: Lack of Health Insurance Coverage Asians in California, 2001

Source: California Health Interview Survey, 2001


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Bay Area RegionIntroduction

A major hub for Asian and PacifiIslander communities since the mid-1800s, the San Francisco Bay Area imaking history in the 21st century. TheBay Area has the highest percentage o

Asians in the continental United States While Asians are the fourth largest raciagroup in the country, the Asian popula-tion in the Bay Area has become the second largest racial group after whites in2000, surpassing Latinos. The Californiacounties with the highest Pacific Islande

percentages are in the Bay Area: SaMateo, Solano, and Alameda. Thegrowth of the Asian and Pacific Islandepopulations has been phenomenal. From1990 to 2000, four cities in the regiondoubled their Asian population, includ-ing Daly City and Milpitas, which arenow majority Asian. Milpitas increasedfrom 34% to 54% Asian from 1990 to2000. The findings of this study capturenot only the spectacular growth of APIpopulations in the greater Bay Area, but

also the complexity of their social characteristics.

Table 5: 2003 Census Population EstimatesBay Area Region Major Racial and Ethnic Groups

Bay Area Total Asian Pacific Latino/ White African AmericanNine County Region Islander Hispanic American Indian

San Francisco 751,682 254,753 34% 5,142 0.7% 105,014 14% 330,303 44% 62,887 8% 24,388 2%Santa Clara 1,678,421 509,044 30% 12,384 0.7% 411,752 25% 704,014 42% 55,419 3% 16,583 2%

Alameda 1,461,030 366,587 25% 18,571 1.3% 295,210 20% 572,789 39% 227,772 16% 2,642 1%San Mateo 697,456 169,168 24% 13,344 1.9% 155,807 22% 340,262 49% 26,995 4% 2,324 2%Solano 412,336 66,126 16% 6,422 1.6% 81,881 20% 193,537 47% 70,528 17% 8,544 1%Contra Costa 1,001,136 139,644 14% 7,868 0.8% 200,919 20% 554,099 55% 105,282 11% 6,942 1%Marin 246,073 14,942 6% 804 0.3% 29,588 12% 191,959 78% 8,376 3% 23,042 1%Napa 131,607 6,718 5% 789 0.6% 34,985 27% 85,830 65% 2,660 2% 8,468 2%Sonoma 466,725 21,561 5% 2,448 0.5% 92,355 20% 336,965 72% 9,939 2% 11,519 2%Bay Area 6,846,466 1,548,543 23% 67,772 1.0% 1,407,511 21% 3,309,758 48% 569,858 8% 104,452 2%

Note: Ranked by percent Asian. All figures are for the inclusive population, single race and multirace combined, and are not exclusive of Latino/Hispanic,except for white, which is single race non-Hispanic only.



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14

Bay AreaRace & Ethnicity Asians

> By the 2000 Census, Asians had sur-passed Latinos and become the secondlargest major racial or ethnic group inthe region. Estimates for 2003 show

Asians as 23% of the population in theBay Area.

> From 1990 to 2000, Asians in theregion grew from under a million tomore than 1.4 million persons, andmore than 1.5 million by 2003.

> Chinese are the largest Asian group in

the region, making up 36% of the Asian population.> Together, Chinese, Filipinos,

Vietnamese, and Asian Indians makeup 84% of the Asian population in theregion.

> Asian Indians increased in size from fifthlargest group in 1990 to fourth largest in2000, growing by as much as 197%.

> Santa Clara County had the fastestgrowing Asian population in theregion, growing by up to 81% from

1990 to 2000.

Pacific Islanders> In both 1990 and 2000, Pacific

Islanders comprised 1% of the areaspopulation. Thirty percent of thestates Pacific Islander population livesin the Bay Area.

> Native Hawaiians and Samoans are thelargest Pacific Islander groups in theregion.

> A disproportionate share of the statesTongan and Fijian populations live inthe Bay Area. Fifty-three percent of the

states Tongans and half of the Fijianslive in the Bay Area.

-10 7 24 41 58 75 92 109 126 143 160

White

Black

Pacific Islander

American Indian

Latino

Asian

1990 to 2000 Alone

1990 to 2000 Inclusive

46%

61%

30%

42%

12%

159%

5%

92%

-4%

6%

-7%

-2%

Figure 10: Population Growth Rate, 1990 to 2000Major Racial and Ethnic groups in the Bay Area

Access to Affordable andSafe Housing

Affordable housing is a

critical issue for Asian and

Pacific Islander households

of modest means attempting

to live in the Bay Area.

According to the National

Low-Income Housing

Coalitions report, Housing

Out of Reach 2003, San

Francisco and San Jose are

the two highest ranked

metropolitan areas in the

U.S. for housing costs.

Housing costs are forcing

increasing numbers of even

moderate-income families

out of the area or into inferior

housing. In addition, a recent

study published by the U.S.

Department of Housing and

Urban Development (HUD)shows that APIs face rates

of discrimination in housing

markets comparable to the

rates experienced by other

racial minorities.


Note: Ranked by 1990 to 2000 alone


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Bay AreaConcentrationCounties with the HighestConcentration> A quarter million Asians live in San

Francisco County, while more than half a million live in Santa Clara County,according to 2003 Census Bureau esti-mates. Santa Clara County has the sec-ond largest Asian population in thestate after Los Angeles County.

> The four counties with the highest Asian percentages in the state are in theBay Area: San Francisco, Santa Clara,

Alameda, and San Mateo Counties.These are also the only counties in thestate where Asians outnumber Latinos.

> The largest number of Pacific Islandersare in Alameda County and the high-est percentage are found in San MateoCounty with 1.9%.

> The Bay Area includes the three coun-ties with the highest percentages of Pacific Islanders in the state: SanMateo (1.9%), Solano (1.6%), and

Alameda (1.3%) Counties.

Places with the HighestConcentrations> Two cities in the Bay Area have a

majority Asian population: Milpitasand Daly City.

> Eight others places are one third or more Asian, including Union City, Cupertino,Hercules, Fremont, Broadmoor, FosterCity, Sunnyvale, and San Francisco.

> San Jose has the largest number of Asiansmore than a quarter mil-lionmaking up 29% of that cityspopulation.

> Other cities among the top ten with thelargest Asian populations in the regionare Oakland (fourth), Santa Clara(eighth), and Vallejo (ninth).

> East Palo Alto has the highest percent-age of Pacific Islanders of any city inthe state of California (9%).

Table 6: Asian Population Concentration in the Bay AreaTen Places in the Bay Area with the Highest Percentage of Asians, 2000

Asian

Bay Area Place Number PercentMilpitas city 34,070 54%Daly City city 55,495 54%Union City city 31,371 47%Cupertino city 23,406 46%Hercules city 8,848 45%Fremont city 80,979 40%Broadmoor CDP* 1,529 38%Foster City city 10,040 35%Sunnyvale city 45,105 34%San Francisco city 253,477 33%Figures are for the inclusive population, single race and multirace combined.Source: 2000 Census *Census designated place

1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.

10.

Table 7: Pacific Islander Population Concentration in the Bay AreaTen Places in the Bay Area with the Highest Percentage of Pacific Islanders, 2000

Pacific Islander

Bay Area Place Number PercentEast Palo Alto city 2,536 8.6%San Bruno city 1,776 4.4%Hayward city 4,709 3.4%South San Francisco city 1,472 2.4%San Mateo city 2,222 2.4%Suisun City city 582 2.2%

American Canyon city 212 2.2% Ashland CDP* 450 2.2% Vallejo city 2,358 2.0%Cherryland CDP* 276 2.0%Figures are for the inclusive population, single race and multirace combined.Source: 2000 Census *Census designated place

1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.

10.

API Ethnic Group Concentration> The largest Chinese population is in San Francisco County, home to 30% of the

regions Chinese.> Two-thirds of the Bay Areas Vietnamese population live in Santa Clara County.> Roughly 45% of the regions Asian Indian population lives in Santa Clara County

while another 30% live in Alameda County.> Filipinos are the largest Asian group in Solano and Napa Counties, where they mak

up 71% and 46% of the Asian population respectively.> Guamanians make up more than half of the Pacific Islander population in Alamed

County. A third of Pacific Islanders in San Mateo and Solano Counties are Tongan.


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Bay AreaSocial Characteristics Age

> Asians and Pacific Islanders have highermedian ages in the Bay Area than in theCentral Valley or Southern California.

> All the counties in the Bay Area havean Asian median age above 30. SanFrancisco County has the highest

Asian median age of all counties in thestate (37.6).

> All the counties in the Bay Area, exceptMarin, have a Pacific Islander medianage below 30. But six out of nine

counties in the Bay Area have a PacificIslander median age higher than thestate median of 25.9 for PacificIslanders.

Average Household Size> Asians and Pacific Islanders have above

average household sizes in all ninecounties in the Bay Area.

> Pacific Islanders have the highest aver-age household size (4.20) in SanMateo County among major racial or

ethnic groups. In all other Bay Areacounties, Pacific Islanders have the sec-ond largest households after Latinos.

> The largest Asian households arefound in the counties of Solano (3.53)and Santa Clara (3.33).

> In seven Bay Area counties, API ethnicgroups have average household sizeslarger than any of the major racial orethnic groups. Tongans have house-holds of 5.16 or higher in Alameda,Contra Costa, San Francisco, SanMateo, and Solano Counties.

> Filipinos and Vietnamese have thelargest households in Santa ClaraCounty, 4.09 and 4.17 respectively.

Overcrowded Housing> Both Asians (23%) and Pacific

Islanders (25%) have rates of over-crowded housing, that are twice ashigh as the regions average of 11%.

> Asians in all nine counties in the Bay Area have overcrowding rates aboveaverage. San Francisco (27%) andSanta Clara (24%) Counties have thehighest Asian overcrowded housingrates in the region.

> Sixteen API groups have above averagerates of overcrowded housing and sixgroups have rates higher than any other major racial or ethnic group. A majority of Hmong, Tongans,

Laotians, and Cambodians are livingin overcrowded housing.> More than one in three Pacific

Islanders in San Mateo County live inovercrowded housing.

> Daly City, Oakland, San Jose, andSanta Clara have the highest rates of

Asians in overcrowded housinamong cities with 10,000 or more

Asians in the region.

Homeownership> Both Asians (57%) and Pacific Islander

(49%) have homeownership ratesbelow the regions average of 58%.

> Seventeen API groups have homeown

ership rates below average, and fougroups have rates below that of any othe major racial or ethnic groups.

> Fewer than a third of Laotians,Cambodians, Samoans, and Hmonglive in homes that they own.

0 6 12 18 24 30

Bay Area Region

Marin County

Contra Costa County

Napa County

Sonoma County

Solano County

San Mateo County

Alameda County

Santa Clara County

San Francisco County

Overcrowded

Severely Overcrowded

17%27%

13%24%

12%22%

21%12%

18%9%

16%8%

16%7%

15%7%

14%8%

11%6%

Figure 11: Overcrowded Housing Rates Asians in the Bay Area, 2000



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Bay AreaEducationEducation> Asian adults age 25 and older have

slightly higher than average rates of not completing high school (18%),but are also much more likely thanaverage to have a college degree (45%).

> Pacific Islander adults are more likely than average to have less than a highschool degree (22%), and also muchless likely to have a college degree thanaverage (18%).

> Southeast Asians and Pacific Islanders

have among the lowest levels of educa-tional attainment in the region. A majority of Hmong, Laotians, andCambodians have not graduated fromhigh school, and Tongans (6%),Fijians (9%), and Samoans (11%)have the lowest college completionrates among the major racial or ethnicgroups in the region.

High School Completion> Eight API groups in the region have

higher than average rates of not com-pleting high school. A majority of Hmong, Laotian, and Cambodianadults have not completed high school,the highest rates among the majorracial and ethnic groups in the region.

> Chinese, the largest group in theregion, lack a high school degree atrates far above average, 23% comparedto 16% for the region.

>

Oakland, San Francisco, and SanPablo cities have the lowest rates of Asian high school completion. Thirty percent or more of Asians in thesecities do not have a high school degree.East Palo Alto and San Mateo citieshave the lowest rates of high schoolcompletion for Pacific Islander adults.Thirty percent or more of PacificIslanders in these cities do not have ahigh school degree.

0 14 28 42 56 70

Bay Area Region

Chinese

Samoan

Fijian

Vietnamese

Tongan

Cambodian

Laotian

Hmong 61%

55%

51%

36%

34%

32%

28%

23%

16%

Figure 12: Less than High School Degree, Above Average Rates Asian & Pacific Islander Groups in the Bay Area, 2000

College Graduation> Nine API groups have below average

rates of attaining at least a bachelorsdegree, and six API groups have rateslower than any of the major racial orethnic groups. Only 6% of Hmong,Laotians, and Tongans have a collegedegree.

> All five Pacific Islander groups havebelow average rates of college com-pletion. Only 9% of Fijians and 11%of Samoans have a college degree.

>

Some Asian groups have the highestrates of college degree attainmentin the region. A majority of 7groups, including Pakistani, Korean,

Japanese, and Asian Indians, have abachelors degree or higher.

All five Pacific Islander

groups have below average

rates of college completion.Only 9% of Fijians and

11% of Samoans have a

college degree.


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Bay AreaIncomeMedian Household Income> Asians have median household incomes

higher than the county median in sevenout of nine counties in the Bay Area.

> Pacific Islanders have median house-hold incomes lower than the county median in five out of nine counties.

> However, many API ethnic groupshave median household incomes below the county median and severalgroupsCambodians, Laotians, andVietnamesehave medians below all

of the major racial or ethnic groups.> Eleven API ethnic groups in Santa ClaraCounty have median household incomesbelow the county median including

Asian Indians with $55,793, comparedto the county median of $74,335.

Per Capita IncomePer capita income is the income available

per individual in a population, rather than for an entire household. Because API house-holds are larger on average, per capita

income is a better measure of an ethnic groups overall well-being.

> Asians and Pacific Islanders have percapita incomes below average in allcounties in the Bay Area.

> Filipinos have above average medianhousehold incomes in all counties in theBay Area, but below average per capitaincomes in all counties. In SolanoCounty, Filipinos have the highest medi-an household income of all racial groups($68,112), but a below average per capi-ta income of $19,193. Contributing tothis great difference in measures of income is the high rate of three or more

workers in Filipino families. A third of Filipino families have three or more

workers, compared to 15% of the totalpopulation in Solano County.

> Samoans and Laotians have per capitaincomes lower than any of the majorracial or ethnic groups in five countiesin the region.

Public Assistance Income> Asians and Pacific Islanders have above

average rates of receiving public assis-tance income.

> Eight API groups have above averagerates of receiving public assistanceincome, and five groups have rateshigher than any of the majorracial/ethnic groups: Hmong,Cambodians, Laotians, Vietnamese,and Samoans.

0 10 20 30 40 50

Bay Area Region

Sonoma County


Contra Costa County

Solano County

Santa Clara County

Alameda County

San Mateo County

Napa County 49%

34%

24%

23%

23%

22%

19%

18%

15%

Figure 13: Families with Three or More WorkersPacific Islanders in the Bay Area, 2000*

A third of Filipino

families have three or more

workers contributing to

the family income,compared to 15% of families

in the Bay Area overall.

*Population threshold not met for Marin County.


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Bay AreaPovertyBelow the Federal Poverty Level> Asians (8%) and Pacific Islanders

(10%) have poverty rates above that of non-Hispanic whites (5%) in the Bay

Area region.> Poverty rates for Asians and Pacific

Islanders are above average in twocounties in the region: Alameda andSan Francisco.

> Pacific Islanders have the second high-est poverty rate (22%) among themajor racial or ethnic groups in San

Francisco County.> Asians make up the largest number of those in poverty in San FranciscoCounty (27,110). There are more

Asians in poverty in San FranciscoCounty than any other racial group.

> Nine API groups have above averagepoverty rates in the region and twogroups have rates higher than any of the major racial or ethnic groups,Cambodians (31%), and Laotians(19%).

Child Poverty> Asians (9%) and Pacific Islanders

(11%) have child poverty rates abovethat of non-Hispanic whites (5%) inthe Bay Area.

> Child poverty rates for Asians andPacific Islanders are above average intwo counties in the region: Alamedaand San Francisco.

> Pacific Islanders have the second high-est child poverty rate (28%) amongmajor racial or ethnic groups in SanFrancisco County.

> Asians make up the largest number of children in poverty in San FranciscoCounty (5,005). There are more Asianchildren in poverty than children of any other racial group in San FranciscoCounty.

> Nine API groups have above averagechild poverty rates in the region, andtwo groups have rates higher than any of the major racial or ethnic groups,Cambodians (40%), and Laotians(24%).

> The city of Oakland has the highest Asian child poverty rate (31%) amongcities with 5,000 or more Asians.

> Richmond has the highest PacificIslander child poverty rate (47%)

among cities with 500 or more PacificIslanders in the region.

Below 200% of PovertyBecause the federal poverty level is adjusted for local costs of living, a multiof the poverty line is often used to beidentify low-income populations. Usi

200% of poverty doubles the poverty leto $34,058 for a family of four.

> Nearly a majority of Pacific Islanderand 27% of Asians in San FranciscoCounty are at 200% of poverty.

> Filipinos have the lowest rates of thos

living below the federal poverty lin(5%) of all racial groups, but aboveaverage rates of those living at 200% opoverty (23%).

Figure 14: Poverty Rates, Groups Above Average Asian & Pacific Islander Groups in the Bay Area, 2000

In Poverty

Child Poverty

40%

24%

18%

12%

21%

31%

19%

16%

12%

11%

15%

15%

9%

10%

11%

10%

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Bay Area Region

Pakistani

Tongan

Vietnamese

Thai

Samoan

Laotian

Cambodian


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Bay AreaLanguage

Asian Child

Asian Total Population

30%50%

40%

38%

29%

29%

25%

23%

28%

23%

22%

13%

23%

15%

14%

16%17%

14%

9%

38%21%

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Bay Area Asians

Solano County

Napa County

Marin County

Sonoma County

Contra Costa County

San Mateo County

Alameda County

Santa Clara County


Figure 15: Limited English Proficiency Asians in the Bay Area, 2000

San Francisco County has the

second highest Asian linguistic isolation

rate in the state with 35%.

One out of four Asian households in

Santa Clara and Alameda Counties

is linguistically isolated.

Limited English Proficiency (LEP)Persons who speak English less than very ware considered limited English proficient.

> More than a third of Asians in the Bay Area have limited English proficiencydefined as speaking English less thavery well.

> Pacific Islanders have the third higheslevel of limited English proficiency ithe region.

> Six Asian groups have a majority limite

English proficient population, including90,000 Vietnamese in the region.> Chinese, the largest Asian group, hav

nearly a majority LEP population(48%).

> Tongans (34%) and Fijians (26%)have the highest LEP rates amongPacific Islander groups.

> Half of the Asian population in SanFrancisco County is LEP, one of thehighest rates in the state.

> Santa Clara County has the second

highest LEP rates in the region40%of Asians and 23% of Asian children.

> San Mateo County (22%) has thehighest Pacific Islander LEP rate.

> A majority of Asians in the city oOakland are LEP, the highest rate of allcities in the region.

> East Palo Alto has the highest PacifiIslander LEP rates in the region (34%)


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Child Limited English ProficiencyChildren age 17 years and younger whospeak English less than very well are con-sidered limited English proficient.

> One in five Asian children is limitedEnglish proficient.

> San Francisco Countys Asian childLEP rate (30%) is among the highestin the state.

> Pacific Islander children have the high-est LEP rates in Merced, San Mateo,

and Fresno Counties (18% each).> The city of Oakland has the highest Asian child LEP rate in the region(41%). Pacific Islander children in EastPalo Alto (29%) and San Bruno (30%)also face high LEP rates.

Linguistic IsolationHouseholds in which all members 14 years old or older speak English less than very well are considered linguistically isolated.

> Asians have the highest rates of house-hold linguistic isolation in the region(25%), followed by Latinos (22%).

> Pacific Islanders have the third highestrate of linguistic isolation (6%).

> Vietnamese have the highest linguisticisolation rate among all API ethnicgroups (44%). Chinese have the sec-ond highest rate with 34%.

> San Francisco County has the secondhighest Asian linguistic isolation ratein the state with 35%. One out of four

Asian households in Santa Clara and Alameda Counties is linguistically isolated.

> The city of Oakland has the eighthhighest level of Asian linguistic isola-tion (42%) across the state.

> A quarter or more of the Asian house-holds in Cupertino, Milpitas, and San

Jose are linguistically isolated.

Table 8: Linguistically Isolated Asian HouseholdsTop Ten Places in the Bay Area, 2000

Bay Area Place Number PercentOakland city 8,823 42%San Francisco city 29,041 35%San Jose city 19,741 29%

Albany city 458 28%San Leandro city 1,498 27%

Alameda city 1,605 26%San Pablo city 375 25%Milpitas city 2,214 25%Cupertino city 1,770 25%Richmond city 1,036 25%

Among places with an Asian inclusive population of 1,000 or more.

South Asians in the Silicon Valley

South Asians have been at the heart of

Silicon Valleys high tech industry. Many have

made their fortunes as scientists, engineers,

managers, and executives working for

industry giants such as Sun Microsystems,

Hotmail, and Cirrus Logic. Co-founded by

Vinod Khosla in 1982, Sun Microsystems

had revenues of $11.2 billion in 2004 and

employed approximately 35,000. While South

Asians have been responsible for the creation

of thousands of jobs in the Silicon Valley,

increasing numbers work for low wages in the

industrys manufacturing sector.Sources: Saxenian, AnnaLee. 1999. Silicon Valleys New ImmigrantEntrepreneurs. San Francisco: Public Policy Institute of California. SunMicrosystems 2004 Annual Report. Jayadev, Raj. 2001. South AsianWorkers in Silicon Valley, in Sarai Reader 2001: The Public Domain.


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Immigration> Asians have the highest foreign-born rates in the region, 64%

compared to 45% of Latinos. Among adults 18 years andolder, 79% are foreign-born.

> Asian youth 17 years of age and younger also have the higheforeign-born rates, 18% compared to 16% of Latino children

> Pacific Islanders have the third highest rate of foreign-bor(28%). Pacific Islander adults age 18 and older have above aveage foreign-born rates, 39% compared to 33% for the region.

> Sixteen API groups have a majority foreign-born populationThree out of four Fijians, Vietnamese, and Asian Indians arforeign-born.

>

Santa Clara and San Francisco Counties have the highest Asiaforeign-born rate among all counties in the state, (67% each)> A majority of Pacific Islander adults in San Mateo County ar

foreign-born.> Sunnyvale, Milpitas, and Santa Clara have the highest Asia

foreign-born rates among all cities in the region, (72% each)

Citizenship> Asians have the highest rates of naturalization amon

foreign-born in the region. More than half of foreign-born Asians have become naturalized U.S. citizens.

> A majority of Korean, Cambodian, Samoan, Vietnamese

Chinese, and Filipino foreign-born are naturalized citizens.


Bay AreaImmigration & Citizenship

Bay Area Region> Asians as a whole have health insurance rates equal to the

regional average (11%), but when data is disaggregated for Asian ethnic groups, great disparities appear. While Filipinos,South Asians, and Japanese show below average rates of unin-surance, Koreans and Vietnamese have much higher thanaverage rates of lacking health insurance coverage.

> Non-citizen Asians also show much higher rates of lackinghealth insurance16% compared to 11% for Asians overall.

> A higher percentage of Asians (13%) do not have a usualplace to go to for medical care than the average person in theBay Area (11%). Of the major racial and ethnic groups,Koreans (23%) and Latinos (22%) have the highest propor-tion without a usual source of care. Chinese (14%), South

Asians (13%), and Japanese (13%) also have higher than aver-age proportions.

Bay AreaHealth

0 16 32 48 64 80

Adult 18 and over

Child 0-17

79%

59%

Asian

Latino/Hispanic18%

16%

Figure 16: Foreign Born Rates, Child and Adult Asians and Latinos in the Bay Area, 2000

0 4 8 12 16 20

Bay Area Total Population

Japanese

South Asian

Filipino

Chinese

Vietnamese

Korean 17%

17%

11%

9%

3%

2%

9%

Figure 17: Lack of Health Insurance Coverage Asian Groups in the Bay Area, 2001

Source: California Health Interview Survey, 2001.


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Central Valley RegionIntroduction

The Central Valley is home to nearly hala million Asians and Pacific Islandersrepresenting 10% of the population. Thefastest growing region in the state in thelast decade, projections show that theCentral Valley will continue to be thefastest growing region in future decadesThe major contributors to this growthhave been, and will continue to be,Latinos, Asians, African Americans, anPacific Islanders. Estimates for 2003show that the Central Valley has joined

the state and other regions in reaching amajority minority population. Thischanging ethnic composition will requireongoing assessments of the needs of thpopulation and re-allocation of resourcesIncreased diversity also brings a variety obenefits. Laotian immigrants have established hundreds of farms in the CentralValley, bringing a rich variety of Asianproduce to California markets andrestaurants.


Table 9: 2003 Census Population EstimatesCentral Valley Region Major Racial and Ethnic Groups

Central Valley Total Asian Pacific Latino/ White African AmericanNine County Region Islander Hispanic American IndianSan Joaquin 632,760 93,576 15% 6,019 1.0% 211,520 33% 275,425 44% 53,828 9% 14,898 2%Sacramento 1,330,711 189,302 14% 16,304 1.2% 235,730 18% 737,581 55% 159,563 12% 34,222 3%Fresno 850,325 79,574 9% 3,147 0.4% 391,243 46% 326,415 38% 52,886 6% 22,761 3%Merced 231,574 17,230 7% 1,186 0.5% 114,526 49% 89,034 38% 10,833 5% 5,706 2%Stanislaus 492,233 28,150 6% 4,660 0.9% 177,143 36% 265,197 54% 18,023 4% 12,454 3%

Tulare 390,791 15,229 4% 1,423 0.4% 210,369 54% 155,391 40% 8,685 2% 10,341 3%Kern 713,087 30,534 4% 2,664 0.4% 296,018 42% 335,211 47% 48,967 7% 18,912 3%Kings 138,564 5,520 4% 579 0.4% 62,912 45% 56,992 41% 12,658 9% 3,471 3%Madera 133,463 2,608 2% 593 0.4% 63,053 47% 60,572 45% 5,798 4% 5,411 4%Central Valley 4,913,508 461,723 9% 36,575 0.7% 1,762,514 36% 2,301,818 47% 371,241 8% 128,176 3%

Note: Ranked by percent Asian. All figures are for the inclusive population, single race and multirace combined, and are not exclusive of Latino/Hispanic,except for white, which is single race non-Hispanic only.


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Central ValleyConcentrationCounties with the Highest Concentration> San Joaquin County is 15% Asian, the highest percentage

of Asians in the region and the seventh highest percentage inthe state.

> Sacramento County has the largest number of Asians in theregion. Statewide, Sacramento County has the seventh largest

Asian population and the eighth highest percentage in thestate (14%).

> The highest percentage and highest number of PacificIslanders in the region are both found in Sacramento County.

Places with the Highest Concentrations>

The city of Stockton has the highest percentage of Asians(23%) in the Central Valley (among cities with 5,000 ormore Asians).

> The city of Sacramento has the largest number of Asians andthe second highest percentage (19%) in the region (amongcities with 5,000 or more Asians).

> The city of Sacramento has the fifth largest number of PacificIslanders among cities across the state.

API Ethnic Group Concentration> Filipinos, the largest group in the region, are the largest Asian

group in only four of the nine counties.> Hmong are more than a third of the Asian population in

Fresno and Merced Counties. More than 50% of the Hmongin the region live in these two counties.

> Asian Indians are the largest Asian group in two counties;Madera (30%) and Stanislaus (26%).

> Laotians are the second largest group in Tulare County, wherethey are one fifth of the Asian population.

Table 11: Pacific Islander Population Concentrationin Central Valley

Ten Places in the Central Valley with the Largest Number of Pacific Islanders, 2000

Pacific Islander

Bay Area Place Number PercentSacramento city 6,833 1.7%Stockton city 2,437 1.0%

Modesto city 2,234 1.2%Fresno city 1,612 0.4%Elk Grove CDP* 773 1.3%

Arden-Arcade CDP* 701 0.7%Bakersfield city 650 0.3%Rancho Cordova CDP* 647 1.2%

Tracy city 643 1.1Citrus Heights city 602 0.7%Figures are for the inclusive population, single race and multirace combined.Source: 2000 Census *Census designated place

Table 10: Asian Population Concentration in Central ValleyTen Places in the Central Valley with the Highest Percentage of Asians, 2000

Asian

Central Valley Places Number PercentLaguna West-Lakeside CDP* 2,105 25%Stockton city 55,887 23%Florin CDP* 6,095 22%Laguna CDP* 7,300 21%Elk Grove CDP* 12,121 20%Parkway-South Sacramento CDP* 7,237 20%Sacramento city 77,008 19%

Vineyard CDP* 1,892 19%Delano city 6,848 18%Gold River CDP* 1,325 17%Limited to Places with 1,000 or more Asians. Figures are for the inclusive

population, single race and multirace combined. Source: 2000 Census *Censusdesignated place

Sacramento County has the largestnumber of Asians in the region. Statewide,

Sacramento County has the seventh largest

Asian population and the eighth highest

percentage in the state (14%).


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Central ValleySocial Characteristics Age

> All nine counties in the Central Valley have Asian median ages below the statemedian age for Asians (32.6).

> Six counties in the region have PacificIslander median ages below 25.9, thestate Pacific Islander median.

> Fresno County has the lowest Asianmedian age (22.6) in the state, amongcounties with 50,000 or more Asians.

> San Joaquin County has the lowestPacific Islander median age in the

Central Valley (22.2).> Children make up a greater percentageof Asian and Pacific Islander commu-nities than average36% for both,compared to 31% for the region. Bothgroups have senior percentages below the areas average of 10%, with PacificIslanders among the lowest senior ratesin the region (4%).

> A majority (58%) of the Hmong pop-ulation is under the age of 17, andfewer than 4% of Fijians, Samoans,

Malaysians, and Hmong are 65 yearsor older.

Average Household Size> Both Asians and Pacific Islanders have

above average household sizes in allcounties in the Central Valley.

> Asians have larger household sizes thanany of the major racial or ethnic groupsin Merced (4.82), Fresno (4.11), andSan Joaquin (3.84) Counties.

> Hmong, Laotians, and Cambodianshave the largest households among themajor racial or ethnic groups insix counties.

> Asian Indians have the highest averagehousehold sizes of any of the major racialand ethnic groups in four counties.

Overcrowded Housing> Both Asians (26%) and Pacific

Islanders (24%) have overcrowdedhousing rates well above the regionsaverage of 14%.

> Twelve API groups have above averageovercrowded housing rates, and fivegroups have rates above all major racialand ethnic groups. A majority of Cambodians and Laotians are living inovercrowded housing, and a majority of Hmong are living in severely over-

crowded housing.> A majority of Asians in the city of Merced and Parkway-South SacramentoCDP live in overcrowded housing.

Homeownership> Both Asians (55%) and Pacific Islander

(52%) have homeownership ratesbelow the regions average of 60%.

> Sixteen API groups have homeownership rates below average, and fougroups have rates below that of any othe major racial and ethnic groups.Fewer than a third of Samoans,Laotians, Cambodians, and Hmonglive in homes that they own.

35%

44

35%

30%

29%

23%

20%

19%

15%

13%6%

0 9 18 27 36 45

CV All Races

Madera County

Kings County

Sacramento County

Kern County

San Joaquin County

Stanislaus County

Fresno County

Tulare County

Merced County

Figure 19: Overcrowded Housing Rates Asians in the Central Valley, 2000



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Central ValleyEducationEducation> A third of Asian adults age 25 years and

older do not have a high school degree,the second highest rate in the regionamong the major racial and ethnicgroups. But Asians also have the high-est rates in the region for completing atleast a bachelors degree. A quarter of

Asians in the area have a college degree.> Pacific Islanders have higher than aver-

age rates of not completing highschool (31%) and lower than average

rates of completing college (11%).

High School Graduation> Eight API groups in the region have

above average rates of not completinghigh school. A majority of Cambodians,Hmong, and Laotian adults do nothave a high school degree, the highestrates among the major racial and ethnicgroups in the region.

> Asian Indians, the fourth largest groupin the region, lack a high school degreeat rates far above average35% com-pared to 28% for the region.

>

A majority of Asian adults in Merced,Livingston, and Parkway-SouthSacramento CDP lack a high schooldegree, the highest rates among cities

with 1,000 or more Asians in theregion.

> A third or more of Pacific Islanderadults in the cities of Merced,Sacramento, Modesto, and Fresno donot have a high school degree.

College Completion> Nine API groups have below averag

rates of completing at least a bachelordegree, and two groups have ratesbelow any of the major racial or ethnicgroups. Only 3% of Laotians and 4%of Cambodians in the region have acollege degree.

> All five Pacific Islander groups havbelow average rates of attaining a college degree: Fijians (7%), Samoan(7%), Tongans (8%), Guamanians

(10%), and Native Hawaiians (16%).

0 16 32 48 64 80

Total CV Region

Asian Indian

Fijian

Tongan

Vietnamese

Pakistani

Cambodian

Hmong

Laotian

66%

67%

70%

43%

28%

42%

42%

37%

35%

Figure 20: Less than High School Degree, Above Average Rates

Asian & Pacific Islander Groups in the Central Valley, 2000

A majority of Cambodians,

Hmong, and Laotian adults

do not have a high school

degree, the highest ratesamong the major racial and

ethnic groups in the region.


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Central ValleyIncomeMedian Household Income> In the Central Valley Asians have

median household incomes below average in three counties and aboveaverage in six counties.

> Pacific Islanders have median house-hold incomes below average in fourcounties and above average infive counties.

Per Capita IncomePer capita income is the income available

per individual in a population, rather for anentire household. Because API households are larger on average, per capita income is abetter measure of an ethnic groups overall well-being.

> Asians have per capita incomes below the county average in all countiesexcept one in the Central Valley.

> Pacific Islanders have per capitaincomes below average in all countiesin the region.

> While Pacific Islanders in MaderaCounty have a median householdincome higher than whites ($43,295),they have the lowest per capita income($7,378) among the major racialgroups. This is attributable to theirlarge household sizes4.03 for PacificIslanders compared to 2.57 for whites.

Another contributing factor is thehigher rate of Pacific Islanders whohave three or more workers in a family 19% compared to 9% for whites.

> Several API groups have per capitaincomes below those of all the majorracial and ethnic groups. Hmong andLaotians have the lowest per capitaincomes in six counties, Cambodiansin five counties, and Samoans in threecounties.

> Filipinos have above average medianhousehold incomes in all counties inthe region but below average per capitaincomes in eight out of nine counties.

Public Assistance Income> Asians (14%) and Pacific Islanders

(12%) have above average (7%) ratesof receiving public assistance incomein the Central Valley.

> Nine API groups have above averagerates of receiving public assistance, andsix groups have rates higher than any of the major racial or ethnic groupsin the region: Hmong (50%),Cambodians (47%), Laotians (46%),Vietnamese (27%), Samoans (19%),and Guamanians (16%).

0 5 10 15 20 25

Central Valley All Races

Kings County

Merced County

Fresno County

San Joaquin County

Stanislaus County

Sacramento County

Tulare County

Kern County

Madera County 22%

16%

16%

15%

14%

14%

13%

12%

9%

12%

Figure 21: Families with Three or More WorkersPacific Islanders in the Central Valley, 2000

A majority of Asian

and Pacific Islander

children in Merced city

and Fresno city are

living in poverty and a thirdor more of the Asian

population in Stockton and

Fresno live in poverty.


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Central ValleyPovertyBelow the Federal Poverty Level> Asians and Pacific Islanders have above

average rates of poverty in the CentralValley. One out of four Asians and oneout of five Pacific Islanders live below the federal poverty line.

> A majority of Cambodians andHmong, and one third or more of Samoans, Vietnamese, and Laotianslive below the federal poverty line.

> Asians have the highest poverty ratesamong the major racial and ethnic

groups in Fresno and MercedCounties37% in both counties.> Pacific Islanders have the second high-

est poverty rates among the majorracial and ethnic groups in three coun-ties: Stanislaus, Madera, and Kings.

> A majority of Asians in the city of Merced live in poverty, and a third ormore in Stockton, Fresno, andParkway-South Sacramento CDP livein poverty.

Child Poverty> Asians have the highest child poverty

rates in the Central Valley region (35%)among the major racial and ethnicgroups. The Pacific Islander childpoverty rate (24%) is slightly below theaverage for the region (26%), but stillmuch higher than that of whites (13%).

> The majority of Cambodian, Hmong,and Laotian children in the CentralValley are living in poverty. More thana third of Thai, Pakistani, Samoan, andVietnamese children live in poverty.These rates are all above those of any of the major racial or ethnic groups.

> Asian children have the highest pover-ty rates among the major racial andethnic groups in four counties: Fresno(49%), Merced (45%), San Joaquin(36%), and Stanislaus (31%). They have the second highest rates inSacramento County (28%).

> Pacific Islander children have the high-est poverty rates among the majorracial and ethnic groups in KingsCounty (39%) and the second highestrate in Stanislaus County (30%).

> A majority of Asian and PacificIslander children in Merced city andFresno city are living in poverty.

200% of PovertyBecause the federal poverty level is not

adjusted for local costs of living, a multiple of the poverty line is often used to better identify low-income populations. Using

200% of poverty doubles the poverty level to $34,058 for a family of four.

> In the Central Valley, Asians andPacific Islanders have above averagrates of persons living below 200% othe federal poverty line.

> A majority of Asians in FresnMerced, and Tulare Counties, and amajority of Pacific Islanders in FresnoMerced, and Madera Counties, are liv-ing below 200% of poverty.

> Eighty percent or more of Hmong,Cambodians, and Laotians, 64% of

Pakistanis, and a majority of Vietnameseand Samoans live below 200% ofpoverty.

Figure 22: Poverty Rates, Groups Above Average Asian & Pacific Islander Groups in the Central Valley, 2000

In Poverty

Child Poverty

66%

61%

50%

46%

42%

42%

55%

55%

44%

40%

34%

34%

19%

31%

25%

26%

0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70

Central Valley

Thai

Pakistani

Samoan

Vietnamese

Laotian

Hmong

Cambodian


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Central ValleyLanguage

Limited English Proficiency (LEP)Persons who speak English less than very well are considered limited English proficient.

> Asians have the highest rates of limitedEnglish proficiency in the Central Valley40% compared to 37% for Latinos.

> Pacific Islanders have the third highestLEP rate in the region (18%).

> A majority of Hmong, Cambodians,Vietnamese, and Laotians are limitedEnglish proficient. A third or more of Pakistanis, Chinese, Asian Indians,Koreans, and Fijians are LEP.

> More than one in five Filipinos, thelargest group in the region, are limitedEnglish proficient.

> Fresno (46%), Merced (45%), and San Joaquin (42%) Counties have thehighest Asian LEP rates in the reg

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The Diverse Face of Asians and Pacific Islanders in California

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