There is no real doubt that most of the hysteria involved in the protest over women and children from Central America seeking refuge in the US is driven by out and out racism. It really is about protecting "traditional American values" (aka white) from being corrupted by foreign influences. That tune has been played off and one for a very long time. However, this is a case of trying to lock the barn door after the fact.
The Latino population is on a sustained track of significant expansion, but that is not coming from immigration.
Immigration Isn’t Driving Hispanic Population Growth
The U.S. immigration picture is changing fast: Migration from Latin America, and especially Mexico, is falling and has been overtaken by immigration from Asia. In an article Wednesday, I focused on what those trends mean for the debate over immigration policy. But they are also driving a major shift in the broader U.S. Latino population.
The Latino population is growing quickly. More than 54 million U.S. residents identified as Hispanic in 2013, up 15 percent from five years earlier. Hispanics now make up 17 percent of the population, up from 15 percent in 2008.
But that growth isn’t due to immigration and hasn’t been for more than a decade. In 2013, according to the Pew Research Center, immigration accounted for just 22 percent of Latino population growth. The rest was due to “natural increase” (births minus deaths). For Asians, the numbers are nearly reversed: 61 percent of growth in the U.S. Asian and Asian-American population is due to immigration.
Statistical data of course represents reality and that is something that has no place in Tea Party ideology. The need is for highly visible enemies.
Latinos are going to reshape the American political landscape over the next generation and they are going to do it at the ballot box. The demographics of this population surge mean that a high percentage of the population is still under 18 and thus too young to vote. However, the number of eligible voters is on a steady trend with the passage of time. Many of those younger Latino citizens are watching TV right now and looking at the angry white people. You can expect them to remember that when it does come time to vote.