logo Penn State Population Research Institute | Population Specialty Group

Thomas D. Boswell, Editor       Department of Geography, University of Miami











NEWSLETTER
POPULATION SPECIALTY GROUP
ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN GEOGRAPHERS

Volume 19                                                                                            Spring 1998
Contents
  • PSG's Bill Frey Research Covered on Front Page of PRB's Population Today
  • PRB Launches Women's Edition 1998
  • Blacks and Whites Still Divided on Race Issues in the U.S.
  • Study of Hispanic Immigrant Children Surprisingly Shows that they Are Embracing their Ethnic Heritage More As they Grow Older
  • New Poll Shows Greater Acceptance for Immigrants
  • U.S. Census Bureau Reports on U.S. Foreign-Born
  • Census in the Classroom ­ 1998 Workshop and Web Access to Be Held at theUniversity of Michigan
  • Joint U.S.-Mexico Study Sees Exaggeration of Migration Data
  • Important Immigration Legislation Passed during 1997 in the United States
  • 2000 Census to Allow American to List More than One Race
  • Why the Census Bureau Plans to Use Sampling in the 2000 Census
  • Female Genital Mutilation
  • Ratio of Legal Abortions to Live Births Falling in the U.S.
    		•

    PSG's Bill Frey Research Covered on Front Page of PRB's Population Today

        William Frey, a member of the AAG's Population Specialty Group, is a demographer with the Population Studies Center of the University of Michigan. The following is a summary of research he has been conducting dealing with Black migration in the United States. This is a summary of an article that appeared on the front page of the Population Reference Bureau's (Vol. 26, No.2, February 1998) Population Today:
        The migration of African Americans to the South from other parts of the United States has accelerated dramatically during the 1990s. Between 1990 and 1996, and for the first time in any five-year period, the South saw net gains of Black migrants from the Northeast, Midwest, and West. Seven of the 10 metropolitan areas that gained the most Black residents between 1990 and 1996 are located in the South.
        The South's booming metropolitan areas ­ Atlanta, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Miami ­ are responsible for some, but not all, of the South's Black Population gains. Black migrants of all ages and education levels, and from all regions, were drawn to many southern rural and urban areas.
        The South lead the nation in population growth between 1990 and 1996, registering a 46% share of the nation's total growth. During that same period, 65% of the nation's Black population growth took place in the South. In contrast, during the 1970s and 1980s, about 50% of the nation's Black population growth occurred in the South. These migration trends represent a reversal of the Black exodus from the South that occurred between 1910 and 1990. For example, during the 1965 to 1970 period, the South experienced a negative net out-migration of 288,000 Blacks. Apparently, positive net migration into the south originated during the late 1960s.
        During the 1990s, Atlanta, for the first time, led all other U.S. metropolitan areas in total Black population gains, with an increase of 159,830 Black residents from 1990 to 1996. Other southern metro areas that ranked in the top 10 for total Black population gains included Washington, D.C., Houston, Miami, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Orlando.
        During the 1970s, economic restructuring and manufacturing downsizing in the northern and northeastern states and the improving racial and economic climate of the South led to a reversal of the African American migration patterns. Between 1975 and 1990, the South gained most of its Black migrants from the Northeast and Midwest, while continuing to lose Blacks to the West. However, since 1990, it has also been gaining Blacks through a net return migration from the West. California's poorly performing economy during the early 1990s may have been most responsible for this.
        Similarly, the South is the major destination for African Americans who have left New York state, specifically for Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina, and Maryland. Migrants from New York state and other northeastern and Midwestern states contributed significantly to Black population gains in the nation's southeastern states.
        While Black migrants to the South are moving to large metropolitan areas, smaller cities and even rural areas in the South also have been gaining Black in-migrants. Between 1990 and 1996, southern metropolitan areas with populations of one million or more saw their Black population increase by 12.3%; Black population gains in smaller metro areas and rural areas were 12.4% and 9.9%, respectively. In 1996, the following states had the largest Black populations: New York (3.1 million), California (2.3 million), Texas (2.3 million), and Florida (2.1 million).
        The U.S. population is becoming increasingly diverse. Yet minority groups are concentrating regionally. While Blacks move to the South, the nation's growing Hispanic and Asian population are continuing to concentrate in the West. More than half of the nation's Black population resides in the south, compared with 33% of the non-Hispanic Whites, 31% of the Hispanics, and only 17% of the Asians. The West alone is home to 45% of the nation's Hispanics and 53% of its Asian population. The regional concentrations of racial groups is the result of the redistribution patterns of immigrant Hispanics and Asians combined with the new domestic migration of Blacks. Black professionals and blue-collar workers, as well as Blacks who have retired, are reversing decades of migration from the South by moving to the South's economically vibrant rural and urban areas.
    PRB Launches Women's Edition 1998
        Nine senior women editors and producers representing influential media organizations in different regions of the globe will join forces through Women's Edition, a program of the Population Reference Bureau (PRB), to examine and report on pressing issues affecting women's health and progress in the developing world. Women's Edition has existed since 1993. The new participants, who were chosen from a field of 70 applicants, have a combined audience of at least 12 million. Women's Edition, which is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), informs policy decisions directly affecting women through factual, accurate, and up-to-date media coverage that reflects women's needs and perspectives. Women's Edition also directly provides information to millions of women in developing countries on issues that are important to them.
        Each participant of Women's Edition publishes or broadcasts in-depth supplements or programs on the themes examined during seminars organized by PRB. In 1998, Women's Edition will help participants set long-range goals and develop strategies to increase media coverage of reproductive health and related topics even after PRB has finished lending its support in the future. PRB will host the first Women's Edition seminar in Washington, D.C., from March 9-13, 1998. Participants will select the site of subsequent seminars. Leaders from reproductive, health, population, and women's interest organizations will be invited to participate in a dialogue with the editors. (Note: This article is derived from The Population Reference Bureau's World Wide Web site.)
    Blacks and Whites Still Dividedon Race Issues in the U.S.
        In the United States, Blacks are far more pessimistic about how the races get along, while Whites see little to be concerned about when it comes to job opportunities for Blacks, according to a new survey of racial attitudes released in June 1997 by the Gallup Organization. Just 34% of Whites feel the government should make greater efforts to support minorities, while 59% of Blacks see a need for greater governmental remedies for inequality.
        In 1958, only 35% of Whites said they would be willing to vote for a well-qualified Black presidential candidate. The same year, 4% of Whites approved of interracial marriage and 80% of Whites said they would leave if Blacks moved into their neighborhoods "in great numbers." Now, 93% of Whites say they could vote a Black person into the White House and 61% approve of mixed marriages. Just 18% of the Whites questioned said they would flee a neighborhood if large numbers of Blacks moved in.
        Among Blacks, young males report far more discrimination than any other segment of the population. Overall, 45% of Blacks said they had been discriminated against. That figure swelled to 70% when limited to Black men in the 18 to 34 year age group. When asked whether race relations will always be a problem in the United States, 58% of Blacks said yes. Among Whites, 54% said race relations will always be a problem. (Paul Shepard, "Blacks, Whites Still Divided on Race Issues," The Miami Herald, June 11, 1997, p. 6A.)
    Study of Hispanic Immigrant Children Surprisingly Shows that they Are Embracing their Ethnic Heritage More As they Grow Older
        Recent research conducted in both South Florida and San Diego by Princeton University sociologist Alejandro Portes and sociologists Lisandro Perez (Florida International University) and Ruben Rumbaut (Michigan State University) surveyed the opinions and attitudes of children of immigrants either born in the U.S. or who immigrated here while very young. These students were questioned two times, once when they were, on average, 14 years of age (in 1992) and four years later (1996) when they averaged 18 years of age.
        The surprising results showed that students when they were older were more likely to embrace their foreign heritage. This was a surprising finding because it is conventional wisdom among social scientists that the longer a person resides in a county the more assimilated he or she becomes to norms. However, when they were 18 years old, these teenagers were less likely to identify themselves as being "American" and more likely to call themselves by a hyphenated name (e.g. Hispanic-American, Mexican-American, Cuban-American, etc.). Also, when they were older those whose origin was a Latin American country were more likely to refer to themselves as being "Hispanic" or "Latin."
        According to the authors of the study, the use of the hyphen represents a way of re-asserting a student's origin and maintaining a certain individuality, while at the same time establishing ties with mainstream American society. In California especially, there was a large decrease in the identification of these students as only American. This was attributed to a backlash reaction to the passage of Proposition 187 and the attacks against immigrants that have been so strong in this state.
        The South Florida students were more protected from anti-immigrant rhetoric because of the stronger presence of the Hispanic economic and cultural enclave and, therefore, they were somewhat more likely to identify with other Americans.
        There also was a tendency for the 18 year old students to identify less with their specific country of origin and more with the collective identity of being Hispanic or Latino. Finally, more than 85% of the students surveyed in 1996 said they preferred to converse in English, instead of the native language of their parents. (Fabiola Santiago, "Children of Immigrants Embrace Ethnicity," The Miami Herald, June 14, 1996, p. 1A.)
    New Poll Shows Greater Acceptance for Immigrants
        During May 1997, Princeton Survey Research Associates sampled the attitudes toward immigration of Americans who were either born in the U.S. or immigrated here before 1980. For the first time since the early 1990s, when immigration became one of the most divisive issues in American politics, Americans are now almost as likely to think immigration is good for the country as to think it is bad. The sample showed that 45% said immigration benefits the nation; 42% said it hurts; 10% said its effects are mixed; and 3% had no opinion. A similar poll conducted in 1993 found that 60% of all Americans thought immigration was bad for the country.
        While 45% of all Whites and 56% of Hispanics in the 1997 sample felt immigration was good for the nation, only 35% of the Blacks felt the same way. Those with less education were most likely to say that present-day immigration is bad for the country. The young, the well-to-do, and Hispanic Americans are the most likely to support immigration.
        High school dropouts were especially worried that immigrants were taking away their jobs. They were also most likely to worry about Whites' loss of majority status in the future, and least likely to approve of marriages that crossed racial and ethnic lines. (Heather Dewar, "A Warmer 'Hello', Immigrants Meet Less Resistance," The Miami Herald, June 15, 1997, p. 1A.)
    U.S. Census Bureau Reports on U.S. Foreign-Born
        With increasing interest focusing on the topic of immigration in the United States, the U.S. Census Bureau began publishing more up-to-date information on the nation's foreign-born population in 1994, based on its annual Current Population Surveys. The latest report, for 1996, has just been released and it indicates that in March 1996 there were 24.6 million persons living in the U.S. who were born in other countries. This is the largest immigrant population ever in this country.
        The foreign-born now represent 9.3% of the total U.S. population. Although there are more immigrants than ever before, this percentage is not as high as it was earlier in this century. For example, it was highest in 1910 when immigrants represented 14.7% of all Americans. The lowest percentage occurred in 1970, when only 4.8% were foreign-born.
        The foreign-born population is not homogeneous. There are great differences in their demographic, social, and economic characteristics, not only based on country of origin but also related to how long they have lived here and whether or not they have become citizens. For instance, recent arrivals among the foreign-born are more likely to live in poverty, to have lower incomes, and to have higher unemployment rates than the native born. However, foreign-born people who have been here more than six years seem to have recovered from their initial economic hardship. In fact, those who arrived during the 1970s are doing as well as natives in terms of their income.
        Almost 27% of the foreign-born population of the United States has come into this country since 1990, and another 34% arrived during the 1980s. The remaining 39% arrived sometime before 1980.
        Almost one-third (32%) of the foreign-born in the U.S. are naturalized citizens. The proportion who have become citizens increases with the length of residence here. For example, while only 23% of those who entered during the 1980s are naturalized citizens, the rate increases to 46% for those who arrived during the 1970s and to 72% for those who arrived before 1970. The citizenship rate for the most recent arrivals is low for several reasons. Some of these people are temporary residents, such as college students and persons on temporary business visas who will return to their home country. Others have not been residents long enough to be eligible for naturalization or may have no intention of becoming U.S. citizens.
     
    Table 1
    Regions and Country of Birth of the
    U.S. Foreign-Born: 1996
    Country or Region Number 
    (Thousands)    		 %
    ALL COUNTRIES
    24,557
    100.0
    Mexico 6,679 27.2
    Canada 660 2.7
    Central America 1,715 7.0
    Caribbean 2,572 10.5
    Cuba 772 3.1
    Dominican Republic 515 2.1
    Jamaica 506 2.1
    South America 1,209 4.9
    Europe 4,143 16.9
    Germany 523 2.1
    Great Britain 579 2.4
    Asia 6,558 26.7
    Philippines 1,164 4.7
    China 801 3.3
    India 757 3.1
    Vietnam 740 3.0
    Korea 550 2.2
    Rest of the World 1,018 4.1
    U.S. Bureau of the Census, March 1996 Current Population Survey.

        Over half of all foreign-born persons living in the U.S. were born in the western hemisphere (Table 1 above). More than one-quarter of the total were born in Mexico. There were 772,000 persons born in Cuba, fourth highest behind Mexico, the Philippines, and China. More than 25% of the foreign-born were born someplace in Asia, and about 17% were born in Europe.
        California has the largest foreign-born population in terms of both numbers (8 million) and the percentage of its population that is comprised of immigrants (25%). New York has the second largest number of foreign-born (3.2 million). Other states with at least a million foreign-born residents are Florida, Texas, New Jersey, and Illinois.
        Foreign-born persons were more likely to receive Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or general welfare payments (5.8%) when compared to natives (4.5%). However, the rates of these types of government assistance decline significantly as length of residency in America increases. In fact, the welfare rates of immigrants who have been here 15 years or more are no different than those of persons born in the United States. (Kristen A. Hanson and Carol S. Faber, "The Foreign-Born Population 1996, Current Population Reports, P20-494, March 1997.

    1998 AAG Meetings in Boston Should
    Be A Banner Year for PSG


    Census in the Classroom ­ 1998 Workshop and Web Access to Be Held at theUniversity of Michigan

        William Frey of the University of Michigan announces a 1997 summer workshop and Internet access to undergraduate teaching materials available with the SSDAN (Social Science Data Analysis Network). Funded by NSF and the Department of Education FIPSE, the Network enables college teachers to introduce "user-friendly" analysis of census data in their classes. Tailor-made data sets, from the 1950 through 1990 U.S. Censuses, and the Current Population Survey, can be used in a variety of social science classes dealing with topics such as: race-ethnicity, immigration, gender studies, marriage, households and poverty, U.S. income inequality, children, the elderly, and others. SSDAN staff will help instructors tailor exercises to their own classes, and make them available to other professors in the Network.
    Interested faculty can participate in the following ways:
    William Frey
    Director, SSDAN
    Population Studies Center
    1225 South University Avenue
    Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104

    Joint U.S.-Mexico Study Sees Exaggeration of Migration Data

        The first formal migration study to be sponsored by the American and Mexican Governments has concluded that the number of undocumented Mexican workers who have settled in the United States in this decade is far lower than some politicians have suggested, about 105,000 per year.
        Drawn from a two-year analysis of American and Mexican census and other data, the figure is the first authoritative estimate of the net annual flow of illegal Mexican workers into the United States, which has been an elusive statistic at the center of political and academic dispute on both sides of the border. The document was commissioned by Presidents Clinton and Ernesto Zedillo in early 1995 and brought together 20 prominent demographers and scholars ­ 10 Mexican and 10 American ­ for two had a half years of research, field work, and analysis.
    Among the study's conclusions are the following: (Note: This article comes from: Sam Dillon, "U.S.-Mexico Study Sees Exaggeration of Migration Data," The New York Times, August 31, 1997, p.1.)
    Important Immigration Legislation Passed during 1997 in the United States
        Congress spent a good part of 1997 making changes to legislation that it had enacted in 1996. Just one year ago, sweeping immigration and welfare reform laws were passed. As these laws took effect and real people began to face the consequences, many legislators came to believe that they had overreached in 1996. As a result, Congress has taken another look at some of that legislation.
        Last year's welfare law indiscriminately excluded legal immigrants ­ including individuals who, because of advanced age or significant disability, were no longer able to work ­ from securing one of the benefits that their taxes funded, namely Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Food Stamps. Congress finally acknowledged the inequitable burden they had placed on these legal immigrants, and in August of this year restored SSI to the elderly and disabled. That agreement, however, still leaves legal immigrants ineligible for Food Stamps ­ an issue which some legislators are also rethinking.
        The new immigration law threatened the deportation of 300,000 Central American refugees back to their homelands. Prior to the law's passage, these refugees had been living and working in the U.S. legally, under various forms of temporary protection from deportation, for more than a decade. After much debate and in the waning hours of this legislative session, Congress approved a measure providing relief to certain Central American war refugees. The bill offers a generous amnesty program to Nicaraguans and some Cubans and a chance to apply for permanent residence for some Salvadorans, Guatemalans, and for certain asylum applicants from Warsaw Pact countries and the former Soviet Union. It does not extend any form of assistance to similarly-situated Haitian refugees, although President Clinton has recently decreed that Haitians are not to be deported in large numbers before their future status can be given the consideration it deserves.
    (Note: This article is excerpted from: Frank Sharry, "Important if Imperfect Legislation Passed in 1997," The Golden Door, Fall 1997, Vol. R, No.4, p. 1.)
    2000 Census to Allow American to List More than One Race
        Americans for the first time will be allowed to choose more than one racial category when describing themselves on the census and other federal forms, the Clinton administration announced. The decision ends a long-standing practice of forcing people to identify themselves as a member of only one racial group, a policy that has triggered growing complaints in the face of high rates of immigration and interracial marriage that have made the nation increasingly diverse.
        Census figures are used to redraw political boundaries, enforce civil rights protections, and administer numerous programs that depend on racial data. At the same time, the issue has come to symbolize less tangible tensions over the way Americans perceive and describe themselves racially.
        The new policy will be in place for the 2000 census and some agencies might implement it before then, but all must use it by 2003. In previous censuses, Americans were told to mark one box from several choices: White, Blacks, American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut, Asian or Pacific Islander, or "other." The result was a set of population figures that could be neatly tabulated, but which left many in the public feeling dissatisfied at being forced to choose one heritage over another. Nearly 10 million Americans marked "other" in the 1990 census.
        In the 2000 census, people can check off as many categories as they like, yielding a much more complete picture of diversity, but also creating a somewhat unwieldy combination of numbers. Ultimately, administration officials have said, the government will publish population totals for each category and for every possible combination. The Census Bureau, for example, would release the number of Americans identifying themselves as White only, a separate number for those considering themselves both White and Black, and a third tally for those checking White, Black, and Asian. It should be noted that the government asks individuals to decide for themselves which race or races they belong to.
        In allowing Americans to choose more than one race, the administration rejected a proposal to create a separate "multiracial" category. That option was promoted by some groups but opposed by many of the major civil rights organizations, which feared it could reduce the numbers of individual minority groups.
        The "Asian and Pacific Islander" category used in the 1990 census will be divided for 2000. Hawaiians had petitioned the Census Bureau to be switched from "Asian or Pacific Islander" to "American Indian or Alaska native," but that was rejected. Instead, the agency decided to have separate categories: "Asians" and "Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander."
    (Note: This article is excerpted from: "Census 2000 Questionnaire to Allow Multiple Race Responses; No Multiracial Category," Census and You, Vol. 32, No. 11, November 1997, p. 1.)
    Why the Census Bureau Plans to Use Sampling in the 2000 Census
        The U.S. Census Bureau has come under increasing attack for the inaccuracies of its 1990 census count. During that census, about 4 million Americans were missed, representing a coverage error of about 1.6%. For the first time in the history of the U.S. decennial censuses, the error was greater than it was for its predecessor. The 1980 census had a coverage error of only about 1.2%. Aggravating the coverage error was the fact that certain racial groups were more underrepresented in the 1990 count than others. For example, whereas, only .7% of the Non-Hispanic Whites were undercounted, the comparable figures for Asians & Pacific Islanders, Blacks, Hispanics, and American Indians were 2.3%, 4.4%, 5.0%, and 12.2%, respectively.
        Not only did the 1990 census suffer from a greater undercount, it also cost more. The average cost per household (standardizing for inflation) was $10 for the 1970 census, but for the 1990 it rose to $25.
        Because the census is used intensively for congressional reapportioning and for upholding the 1965 Voting Rights Act, as well as for supporting federal assistance programs designed for the poor, the undercount and cost factors have become the two major sources for complaints against the Census Bureau. In 1992 congress created a special panel of experts at the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to study the mounting problems concerning the accuracy and cost issues. It reached three main conclusions:     The panel's most important recommendation involved the use of sampling. It suggested that sampling should be used to estimate the number and characteristics of the nonrespondent household that remain uncounted. The recommendations of the NAS were reviewed by a second panel, that reaffirmed these recommendations.
        As a result of these deliberations, the Census Bureau has decided to use sampling after reasonable efforts have been made to find those who do not respond to the 2000 questionnaire. Because sampling procedures have become so accurate (with measurable error factors) their use should improve the accuracy of the counts. In addition, the use of sampling will be much less expensive than attempting to physically locate each of the people who were not counted, as was done during the 1990 census.
        The 2000 census plans also call for a nationwide, state-by-state, 750,000-household post enumeration survey, as a quality check of the population to ensure accuracy. (Note: This article summarizes material obtained from: Martha Farnsworth Riche (Director, U.S. Bureau of the Census), "Should the Census Bureau Use "Statistical Sampling" in Census 2000?" Population Today, Vol. 32, No. 10, October 1997, pp. 1-4.)

    Female Genital Mutilation

        In 1997 a new U.S. law took effect that criminalizes female genital mutilation (FGM). This is the practice of cutting off part or all of a girl's genitalia. Sometimes it is also referred to as "female circumcision." The practice is common in parts of Africa and the Middle East and the new law requires federal authorities to inform new immigrants from these countries that they face up to five years in prison for performing the procedure or arranging it for their daughters.
        At least two dozen other countries, including 19 in Africa, have issued official statements or enacted laws against FGM. International organizations such as UNICEF and UN Population Fund (UNPF), and the World Health Organization have taken a stand against it. Delegates at UN conferences on human rights in 1993 and on women in 1995 condemned the practice as a human rights violation.
        Still, it is estimated that somewhere between 85 and 115 million women worldwide have undergone FGM, with 2 million girls being newly "operated" on each year. Typically, girls between the ages of four and eight undergo the procedure. There are three types of genital mutilation procedures that are common. The first (called "Sunna"), and least severe, involves removal of the clitoral prepuce (or foreskin), sometimes with all or part of the clitoris also being cut out. The second is called "intermediary circumcision" or "excision" and entails removal of the clitoris and usually the labia minora. The third, called "infibulation," is the most severe and involves removal of the clitoris, the labia minora, and most of the labia majora. The law surfaces of the labia majora are then stitched together to form a seal, leaving only a small opening for urine and menstrual blood. Infibulation is most common in Africa, while Sunna and excision are more common in Egypt.
        The health consequences of F.M. last well beyond the initial pain of the cutting. In the short term, shock or hemorrhage from the procedure can lead quickly to death. Infections from unsterile instruments or so-called healing salves are common, and left untreated, can result in debilitating illness or death. Wound infections can also lead to long-term reproductive tract infections, chronic pelvic pain, and sterility. For women who have been infibulated, pregnancy and childbirth bring more risk and pain. These women must be cut open in order to give birth, which can lead to a buildup of scar tissue, causing urinary and menstrual complications.
        Recent surveys suggest that 89% of the women in northern Sudan and 95% in Eritrea have undergone F.M. In Egypt the comparable figure is 97% for ever-married women. A majority of women interviewed in Egypt said they believed that the practice should continue for religious reasons and as a way of keeping girls "pure" before and after marriage.
        Most Americans first learned of F.M. in 1994, when a Nigerian mother and her daughters sought asylum in the U.S. to avoid forced circumcision. The Center for Disease Control estimates that more than 150,000 girls currently residing in the U.S. have either experienced F.M. or risk having the operation this year.
    (Note: This article summarizes the following article: Kate Chalkley, "Female Genital Mutilation: new Laws, Programs Try to End Practice," Population Today, Vol. 25, No. 10, October 1997, pp. 4-5.)
    Ratio of Legal Abortions to Live Births Falling in the U.S.
        January 1998 marked the 25th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in the United States. The U.S. abortion ratio (number of legal abortions per 1,000 live births) was about 200 in 1973 and then rose rapidly to about 350 in 1979. It hovered around 350 until about 1990, and since then it has somewhat declined to slightly above 300 by 1995. The reasons for the recent decline include greater contraceptive use, the aging of the reproductive-age population, and increasing difficulty in obtaining an abortion. ("Graphically Speaking," Population Today, Vol. 26, No. 1, January 1998, p. 6.)

    Thomas D. Boswell
    Department of Geography
    University of Miami
    Coral Gables, Florida 33124-2060