New Census data shows that more Hispanics are speaking English very well. They understand how important it is to any success they can have in this country. Some areas still have low rates of English speakers, though, so more classes are needed. DP
By Haya El Nasser and Paul Overberg, USA TODAY
More Spanish speakers are speaking English very well despite a steady influx of immigrants this decade — a sign that they are blending in at least linguistically, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Census data released Tuesday.
The drop in the percentage who struggle with English is most noticeable in some of the largest counties and cities that have attracted immigrants for decades.
In Los Angeles County, the percentage of the Spanish-speaking population that has trouble with English slid from 21% in 2000 to 19.6% in 2005-07, the three years measured in the data released today. In El Paso, the share dropped from 32% to 28.5%.
In many places, the share has not increased despite growth in immigration: Pima County, Ariz., which includes Tucson, at 8.4%; Atlanta's Fulton County at 4.1%.
In many new destinations for Hispanics, however, the inability to speak English fluently is a growing challenge. In some smaller counties in Colorado, South Carolina and some other states, the number of Hispanics who say they don't speak English "very well" has risen.
In Prince William County, in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., the share more than doubled to 9.3% or almost 30,000 people.
In Oregon's Clackamas County, southeast of Portland, about 5,000 more people who speak Spanish don't speak English "very well." They total more than 11,000 or about 3% of the population.
The new American Community Survey offers the first detailed demographic profile since the 2000 Census of places with as few as 20,000 people.
When people respond to the Census survey by saying they speak English "very well," it means they're fluent. Anything less means that people often can't read bank statements, rental agreements and warning labels and have difficulty communicating with a doctor or police officer, linguists and demographers say.
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