Blacks continue moving out of Detroit, creating two new majority suburbs
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Aug. 16—While Michigan's African American population declined slightly over the past decade, Black residents have become a majority in two more Detroit suburbs, according to U.S. Census data, reflecting a continued movement from the state's largest city to nearby communities.
Blacks comprise 13.5% of the state's population, down from 14% in 2010, according to the latest Census Bureau numbers. It remains above the national average of 12.1%.
But Blacks are spreading out and becoming a bigger part of the community in a variety of localities, especially in Metro Detroit.
This occurred as Asians and Hispanics experienced the most population growth in Michigan over the past 10 years, but remained smaller portions of the state's populace than Whites and African Americans.
The rapid growth of Black residents in the Wayne County community of Harper Woods, as well as the Macomb County community of Eastpointe, helped fuel the change.
More African Americans also moved into other suburbs, including nearby Warren, the state's third-largest city.
The exodus from Detroit started in the latter part of the century's first decade, said Kurt Metzger, a demographer who is Pleasant Ridge's mayor.
"Much of this is due to African Americans in Detroit moving to suburban communities with affordable housing and good schools," Metzger said. "Here we have communities that border the city and which saw large numbers of African Americans moving in last decade when more than 180,000-plus African Americans left. They have found the suburbs to be welcoming and have continued to move in."
One of those communities is Redford Township in Wayne County, which is on Detroit's western border. It now has a plurality of Blacks after being a White-majority locality for decades. Blacks make up 47% of residents compared with 44% of Whites after their numbers grew nearly 67% in the past decade.
There were similar growth spurts in Harper Woods, where the African American population grew 58% from 2010 to 2020, while the Black populace soared nearly 89% in nearby Eastpointe.
African Americans comprised 66% of Harper Woods' residents in 2020, up from 45.6% in 2010, according to the Census Bureau. Whites now make up 27% of the city's population.
Eastpointe is about 53% Black, up from 29.5% a decade ago. Whites now comprise 39% of the community.
Mary Hall-Rayford and her husband, Tyrone, moved from the east side of Detroit to Eastpointe in 2012 looking for a peaceful, safe neighborhood. She said she wasn't disappointed.
"I'm a writer, and when I get writer's block, I like to get out and walk," said Hall-Rayford, 69. "This was a safe place to do that. People smiled, they spoke. No loose dogs to worry about. An entirely different experience. I love the block that I live on right now."
Hall-Rayford, a retired teacher, said she enjoys her neighbors. She sits on the Eastpointe School Board and is involved in a racially, politically and religiously diverse community group called EASE, or Eastpointe Advocates Supporting Equality.
The group is working on a unity monument for Kennedy Park, she said.
"We get involved and try to help each other out," Hall-Rayford said. "For me, it's the small-town feel. I grew up in a very small place in West Virginia. This is reminiscent of home."
Asian and Latino growth
Whites remain the largest proportion of Michigan's population at 72%, down from nearly 77% a decade ago.
But Asian and Hispanic populations experienced the most growth in Michigan in the past decade. Hispanics now account for 5.6% of the state's population, up from 4.4%, while Asians make up 3.3%, up from 2.4% in 2010, according to the Census.
The state's Asian population expanded 38%, while the Hispanic or Latino population grew by 27%, according to the data. The increase mirrors population growth among the two groups nationwide.
"The Asian and Hispanic populations have been leading growth in Michigan and the U.S. for a while now," Metzger said. "Michigan has had a higher growth in Asians than the United States, but lower for Hispanics."
He attributes the growth to immigration, coupled with younger populations and higher birth rates. He notes the Asian population is diverse in socio-economic terms and includes Asian Indians, Chinese, Japanese, Chinese Bangladeshi, Vietnamese, Hmong and Thai.
Michigan's White population, which dropped to 72%, remains above the national average of nearly 58%, according to the Census Bureau.
"The White population is dropping nationally due to low birth rates, increasing deaths and low numbers of new migrants," Metzger said. "Michigan has an old White population that is dying off. Just look at the 50 counties that lost population, particularly the Upper Peninsula and east side of the northern lower peninsula. All these counties are whiter than the state average."
In Detroit, Asian Americans grew 36% from a decade ago and now make up 1% of the residents. Hispanics or Latinos now comprise nearly 7% of the city's population.
The two groups also contributed to the 60% explosion in population in Lyon Township in Oakland County, which recorded Metro Detroit's highest growth rate. Latinos experienced 119% growth in the township, while Asians increased 674% as both groups remained a small fraction of the township's overall populace.
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The Asian community more than doubled in the Macomb County city of Center Line, increasing to 5.5% of the community from 2.4% in 2010. The growth was even more pronounced in Warren, where they now comprise 10.2% of the city, up from 4.6% a decade ago. Whites now make up 62% of Warren's population.
Macomb County Commissioner Mai Xiong, who is Hmong, said she lives in Warren, which she said is a great community and still affordable. In the early 1990s, there was an influx of Hmong political refugees from Thailand who were sponsored by local churches and relocated to the Detroit area. Many worked factory jobs and as their children got older and were better educated, they moved into the suburbs, including Warren, Xiong said.
"I'm not surprised that the population in Warren has continued to grow," Xiong said. "Asian families, particularly Hmong, they tend to move where there's family. Even if they have to travel out of the city to work, family is a very important thing in our community."
Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, said she's excited to see the Asian population growth in the state. Chang, the first Asian American woman to be elected to the Michigan Legislature, said the Asian community is sometimes forgotten or marginalized.
"What I think is really important is as the Asian American population is growing, that we're also growing in our voice in the democratic process," she said. "I'm going to be really interested in how it all plays out with redistricting."
An independent commission is starting to study how to redraw the political boundaries for state legislative seats and Congress. The panel expects to deliver its proposed new maps by the end of the year.
"We're here," Chang said. "We're having families, and we're contributing to the state. We're a really important community that needs to be paid attention to."
Twitter: @CWilliams_DN
