Source: Child Trends
Julia Mendez, Danielle Crosby, Lina Guzman, and Michael López (June 2017)
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Why research on low-income Hispanic children and families matters Hispanic or Latino children currently make up roughly 1 in 4 of all children in the United States, and by 2050 are projected to make up 1 in 3, similar to the number of white children. Given this increase, how Hispanic children fare will have a profound impact on the social and economic well-being of the country as a whole.
Notably, though, 5.7 million Hispanic children, or one third of all Hispanic children in the United States, are in poverty, more than in any other racial/ethnic group.
Nearly two thirds of Hispanic children live in low-income families, defined as having incomes of less than two times the federal poverty level.
Despite their high levels of economic need, Hispanics, particularly those in immigrant families, have lower rates of participation in many government support programs when compared with other racial/ ethnic minority groups.e-g High-quality, research-based information on the characteristics, experiences, and diversity of Hispanic children and families is needed to inform programs and policies supporting the sizable population of low-income Hispanic families and children.