WASHINGTON, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- Minorities are moving out of U.S. cities in search of jobs, changing the face of suburban living.
In 2006, nearly one in 10 of the 3, 141 U.S. counties had a majority of minority residents, The Washington Post reported Thursday.
Hispanics account for most of the minority population growth, and the main cause of movement is economic.
In some areas, immigrants have moved in along with middle-class white families to fill the demand for construction, gardening and housekeeping workers.
In other areas -- especially more rural ones -- the white population has moved away as jobs in manufacturing, mining and family farming have dried up, some experts speculate. Those jobs have been replaced by less-desirable jobs in industries like meat packing and textiles, which are more likely to be filled by non-white immigrant workers, the Post said.
Black families are also moving into suburbs, much as white families did a few decades ago.
Some counties have not been very welcoming to the minority newcomers, enacting laws that limit services to immigrants or designate English as the official language.
