In a related post to the recent metro population comparison of Columbus to its peer 1.5-2.5 million group, I wanted to see where the metros stood as far as their current racial makeup as well as where they are trending. So here are the current Columbus metro diversity trends, along with 17 other peer metros, according to the US Census.
First, let’s take a look at the breakdown of race by metro in 2012, the last year that data is available.
Columbus had the 5th highest % of its metro population as White, non-Hispanic.
Columbus came in at #8 for the % of its metro population being Black, non Hispanic.
Columbus ranks 9th for its % of metro population that is Asian, non-Hispanic.
Columbus ranked poorly in this group, coming in at 15th of 18.
Finally, Columbus ranked 7th in the population of Other, non-Hispanic as a % of the total metro population.
So currently, what is the overall diversity ranking of the 18 metros? To find out, I used a simple formula: Each metro would be assigned points (1-18) based on the ranking position in each racial group. Here are the final rankings.
Overall, Columbus comes in as the 8th most-diverse metro in its 18-peer group. So a bit better than average and perhaps a bit surprising to some.
But what about where this diversity is trending? To find out, I looked at 2005 and 2012 and calculated how each racial group had changed over the period.
Columbus did relatively well with Non-Hispanic Whites, growing at the 5th best pace.
The Columbus metro came in the top 10, at #7, for Non-Hispanic Black population growth.
The metro didn’t fare as well on growth in the Asian population, coming in at 10th.
Columbus came in at #6 for this group.
So using the same point system from above, what were the fastest diversifying metros as of 2012?
The Columbus metro was the 5th fastest diversifying metro in its peer group in 2012.
Overall, Columbus ranks higher than and much higher than average in both current racial diversity and the rate of racial diversity growth, respectively. The Columbus vs. Other Cities page examines many types of similar population and demographic comparisons.
