Other minorities After Hispanics, blacks are the next largest minority group in Colorado Springs, and Asians are in third. The nonwhite share of El Paso County's population stood at 17.2 percent in the 2000 census. Contact information Tom Ragan may be reached at 476-1661 or tragan@gazette.com

Hispanic numbers skyrocket

State's largest minority grows by 75 percent

By Tom Ragan/The Gazette

Colorado's story of race as told by the census is much like those told in many other states across America, only more so.

The state's Hispanic population surged by nearly 75 percent during the 1990s, according to census figures released Monday. That's a rate of growth seen in few of the other 25 states whose census results have been released.

Close behind are Asians, whose numbers grew by more than 60 percent. The population of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, while smaller in total numbers, also grew by more than 60 percent.

Hispanics make up 17 percent of Colorado's total population, up from 13 percent in 1990.

Hispanics have long been Colorado's largest minority group, and the 2000 census showed they have barely surpassed the number of blacks nationwide.

In Colorado Springs, Hispanics accounted for 12 percent of the city's total population. That ranks the Springs fourth behind Denver, Aurora and Pueblo.

In El Paso County, Hispanics make up 11 percent of the total population, outnumbering even their counterparts in Pueblo County by more than 4,500 and registering third across the state in total numbers - behind only Denver and Adams counties.

Bob Armendariz, editor of Hispania News in Colorado Springs, said the numbers underscore the growing influence of Hispanics.

"It's time for Hispanics to take charge," he said. "We no longer have excuses. We're number one and we need to step up and be leaders - in politics, in education, in everything.

Joseph John Kotlowski/Gazette file Eight-year-old Charles Abeyta, left, and Michaelangelo Velasquez, 9, are part of a fast-growing Hispanic population in Colorado Springs.

"In other words, there's no longer a reason why one kid on the block can get a Ph.D. and another kid living a few doors down can't even get a high school diploma. You can't point to the environment or to ethnicity."

In Colorado Springs, blacks were the second-largest minority group, and Asians third. The nonwhite share of El Paso County's population, 11.8 percent 10 years ago, rose to 17.2 percent in 2000.

The 2000 census gave Coloradans more colors than ever to paint their self-portrait, allowing each to choose up to six different races to describe themselves. In all, there were 63 unique racial permutations, compared to five in 1990.

Statewide, 2.8 percent of the population listed themselves as a member of more than one race. The share was slightly higher in El Paso County, 3.9 percent.

Even the expanded categories weren't enough for about 18,000 county residents, who claimed they belonged to some other race not included in the original six.

In the 1990 census, nearly 11,000 local residents in El Paso County were classified by the census as "other Hispanic" - generally people from Central or South America.

That group had increased by 14.4 percent over the decade, due, in part, to growth associated with the area's military bases, whose personnel sometimes marry foreign nationals.

A survey showed that El Paso County also has a large number of new arrivals from other areas, such as Europe and Asia, as a result of the military transfers.