Race and Ethnicity in America's Metropolitan Areas

This map shows the cities with the largest percentages of a particular race or ethnicity.  Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics all form majorities in one or more metro areas.  Asians, Native Americans/Alaska Natives, Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders, and multi-racial Americans are not the majority in any metro in 2010.

Marriage Map Showing Appellate Circuits

I've updated yesterday's marriage map to show the US Court of Appeals Circuits.  There are 11 multi-state circuits plus the 12th, the District of Columbia circuit.  Thus, the 10th circuit court ruling for UT should also apply to WY, CO, and KS.  Colorado is now blue because the CO Attorney General says his state will comply with the appellate court ruling and begin issuing licenses.  

Similarly, the 4th circuit's ruling overturning VA's ban should also apply to NC, SC, and WV.  

Rulings by the 6th circuit based out of Cincinnati and the 9th based out of San Francisco are expected soon.  Cases before the circuit courts in the 5th and 11th are progressing.

Yesterday the five states directly affected by yesterday's Supreme Court decision to not take up the 7 same-sex marriage cases began moving towards offering marriage licenses.  Colorado's Attorney General also announced his state will begin issuing licenses.  On the other hand South Carolina's Attorney General announced he will continue to fight for the ban in his state.  

America's Hispanic Majority Metros

Seventeen of America's 366 metro areas have populations whose majority are Hispanic.  All 17 of these metros are found in the American Southwest from central California to Texas.  Historically these 17 urban areas have been part first of Spain's New World colonial empire and later Mexico.

America's most Hispanic metro area is Laredo, TX, where 97% of the population are Hispanic.

New Marriage Map Based on US Supreme Court Actions Today

Today the US Supreme Court declined to hear 7 same-sex marriage cases which have worked their way up through lower and appellate Federal courts.  Each of these 7 cases ruled bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional, but each case currently had a stay on allowing same-sex couples to get marriage licenses.

With the US Supreme Court declining to hear these 7 cases, the appellate decision stands, and the stays go away.  Thus, today same-sex marriage should be legal in VA, OK, UT, IN, and WI where appellate decisions have already been made regarding those states' bans.  Other states will also likely be affected since they are in the appellate court jurisdictions governed by these rulings (NC, SC, WV, KS, CO, and WY).  

Appellate courts that are expected to soon release their decisions soon that would affect:

6th Circuit:  KY, OH, TN, and MI

9th Circuit:  NV, ID, AZ, MT, and AK

With today's five new states, 51% of Americans live in states where same-sex couples will be able to legally wed.  If marriage equality spreads to the 6 other states (WY, KS, CO, NC, SC, and WV), 58% of Americans will live in a state where same-sex couples can marry.  

Note on the Sept. 10 map of ruling below:

There have now been two Federal court decisions in Louisiana:  one upheld the state's ban on same-sex marriage; the other ruled it unconstitutional.  Lower Federal rulings in the 5th (TX, LA and MS) and 11th (GA, AL, and FL) are still waiting to be reviewed by the appellate courts for those circuits.

America's Only Majority Black Metro

The majority of Black Americans live in urban areas, but African-Americans make up the majority of the population in only one metropolitan area:  Albany, GA.

Women Dominate American Metro Areas

Females make up the majority of Americans in part because women tend to outlive men.  This pattern holds true as well for most metro areas.  Indeed, females outnumber males in most metro areas.  There are, however, exceptions.  A number of metros in southern California and Utah have male majorities.  All the metro areas in Alaska and Hawaii are also majority male.  Some of the other male majority metros are college towns such as Blacksburg (VA), Columbia (MO), and Austin (TX).  Others such as Jacksonville (NC) and San Diego (CA) have large military bases.