African Americans by the Numbers: Understanding and Interpreting Statistics on African American Life

Provides an invaluable source for students as well as academics on the current condition of African Americans, highlighting disparities throughout an array of social, economic, and political areas.

African Americans comprise approximately 12 percent of the population of the United States―a sizable proportion. Yet African Americans are incarcerated at rates disproportionate to their overall population in the United States. By examining a wide range of socioeconomic topics and supplying necessary background and contextual information, this book offers a multidimensional view of African American life that covers such critical areas as education, health, immigration and migration, employment, and the economy.

This statistical guide presents extensive demographics on African Americans, breaks down the hard numbers, explains what the statistics indicate about the socioeconomic condition of African American life, and places this information into historical and contemporary context. This book also provides detailed comparisons of African Americans to other races and ethnic groups. Readers will be challenged to interpret the numbers and draw logical conclusions from them; as a result, this reference serves to help students build critical thinking skills that are essential to success in the classroom and beyond.