Modern-Day Colonization

The 48 states of the United States — not including Alaska or Hawaii — and the District of Columbia, which are located to the south of Canada, comprise a territory named “the continental or contiguous United States,” originally inhabited by indigenous peoples whom Europeans — mainly English — colonizers almost eradicated. First, they colonized the six Northeastern states, now known as New England; next, they expanded to the South and West, conquering more indigenous territory all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

With the Louisiana Purchase and wars against Spain and Mexico, the “continental” or “contiguous” United States were formed, spanning more 7,825,268 square kilometers, currently with 215 million inhabitants, who make up 99 percent of the entire U.S. population. It is unknown exactly how many millions of indigenous peoples died in the conquest — only that the toll was high. Today, scarcely 5 million survive, mainly on reservations, amounting to 225,000 square kilometers of land — 0.02 percent of the original indigenous territory. Some tribes received sums of money that they have invested successfully and today, the Seminole, for example, own several businesses.

The indigenous Apaches, Cherokees, Navajos, Comanches and others are the real U.S. natives. The rest are immigrants or descendants of immigrants, whether they be English or Peruvian. The U.S. is the result of immigration and expansionist wars. The first immigrants were English, German, Irish and Italian. Some use the term WASP — White Anglo-Saxon Protestant — to describe American whites. It is an inexact term since it includes Irish-Catholics, Italian-Latinos, Polish-Slavs, and others, and excludes white Hispanics, although clearly, it is more inexact to call them “Americans.”

Migration continues, especially of Hispanics, who arrive peacefully to coexist in harmony, work or invest. In the United States, there are 30 million Mexicans — more than 25 percent of the entire Mexican population. There are Hispanic Cubans, Colombians, Venezuelans, Central Americans and people from every country in Latin America. The Hispanic population is young and in rapid growth due to immigration and a high birth rate. It has contributed to a population increase in the U.S. for decades — made equal contributions to the development of the country — and so may it continue for many decades to come.

Official projections indicate that by 2050, the population of Hispanic origin — including white Hispanics — will surpass its current 17 percent to get to 30 percent; the African-American population will go from 12 percent to 15 percent; the Asian-American population from 4 percent to 8 percent; and 1 percent will continue to comprise other races. This will cause the percentage of non-Hispanic whites to be reduced from its current 66 percent to 46 percent.

The WASPs or “Americans” will no longer be the majority in a very pluralist, multiracial and multicultural United States — formed by a diverse group of immigrants — where no one can be considered a “minority” since no race or culture will be in the “absolute majority.” In various cities, Spanish is spoken as much as English; their president — whom I personally admire — is African-American. Everyday, there are more members of Congress, governors, mayors and civil servants of Hispanic, African-American, Asian and other origins. The same goes for doctors, lawyers, engineers, executives, investors of different races and nationalities. There are ever more parts of the country where tacos are as popular as hot dogs.

The year 2050 is a long way off, but whites are currently the minority in four states: Hawaii, New Mexico, California and Texas, as well as in Washington, D.C. According to projections on Census.gov, in the cities of the most highly populated and wealthiest states, such as California, Texas, New York, Illinois and Florida, the number of whites will gradually decrease and head toward being in the majority only in the less-populated states in the country’s northern Midwest, like in Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho and Nebraska.

A young Latino recently said to me in Dallas:

“We are re-colonizing the U.S. Texas used to belong to Mexico, and today Mexicans and other immigrants are re-conquering it.”