According to the Carolina Demography, the Hispanic population in North Carolina is now greater than one million people, with 1,118,596 residents according to the 2020 Census. Over that last decade, North Carolina's Hispanic population grew to nearly 320,000 new residents, and the Latino population grew by 40%, being the most significant increase of any racial and ethnic group in the state.
Mecklenburg County has 170,000 people in the Latino and Hispanic communities.
In honor of Hispanic Heritage month, EQUALibrium Live hosted a public conversation celebrating this immense growth of the Latino population and discussing how this has affected Charlotte currently and in the future.
We sat down with local leaders and talked about how the growth of the Latino population has made Charlotte a more bilingual and multicultural city. We discussed the importance of cultural awareness and the increase of diverse small businesses.
Additionally, in our public conversation, we also addressed the needs that would greatly benefit the Latino community in the Charlotte area.
Guests:
Federico Rios, assistant director of the Office of Equity, Mobility and Immigrant Integration in the city of Charlotte.
Rocio Gonzalez, executive director, Women's Business Center of Charlotte.
Jose Hernandez-Paris, executive director of the Latin American Coalition.
Lennin Caro, lead community researcher at Camino Research Institute.
