The most and least racially & ethnically diverse NC cities and towns (Charlotte: chapel, quality of life)

[Rwarky]

Which North Carolinian cities and towns would you classify as the most racially and ethnically diverse (inclunding interracial couplings), which ones are the least diverse in this area?

My picks for most diverse are: Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh, Durham, Fayetteville

Least diverse area: Wilmington (excluding tourists)

[Francois]

You can do your own research right here on City-Data's own page:

North Carolina Cities.

For each city, it has race breakdown and a pie chart. I would say Durham would be near the top in diversity, and Apex or Chapel Hill near the bottom, but the stats are there for your perusal.

Why do you ask?

[heeha]

I think a lot of the coastal communities are the least diverse like the towns on the OBX, Morehead City, Wrightsville Beach, Oak Island, etc.

The most diverse would probably go to Charlotte and Durham.

[urbancharlotte]

Originally Posted by heeha

I think a lot of the coastal communities are the least diverse like the towns on the OBX, Morehead City, Wrightsville Beach, Oak Island, etc.

Ashe county (just north of Boone) is the least diverse county I could find in the state. The non-Hispanic white population there is 93.2%. Here are the rest of the stats on Ashe county.

Total population 27,281
White persons-----------------95.5%--26,053
Black persons------------------0.6%------164
American Indian----------------0.2%-------55
Asian persons------------------0.4%------109
Native Hawaiian----------------0.1%-------27
reporting two or more races-----1.0%------273
Hispanic or Latino origin---------4.8%----1,309
White persons not Hispanic-----93.2%---25,426
Ashe County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

Originally Posted by heeha

The most diverse would probably go to Charlotte and Durham.

Durham total population 267,587
White persons-----------------46.4%--124,160
Black persons------------------38.0%--101,683
American Indian----------------0.5%-----1,338
Asian persons------------------4.6%----12,309
Native Hawaiian----------------0.1%-------268
reporting two or more races-----2.6%-----6,957
Hispanic or Latino origin---------13.5%---36,124
White persons not Hispanic-----42.1%---112,654
Durham County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

Meck total population 919,628
White persons-----------------55.3%--508,554
Black persons-----------------30.8%---283,245
American Indian----------------0.5%-----4,598
Asian persons------------------4.6%----42,303
Native Hawaiian----------------0.1%-------920
reporting two or more races-----2.6%----23,910
Hispanic or Latino origin---------12.2%--112,195
White persons not Hispanic-----50.6%---465,332
Mecklenburg County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

Durham is certainly the diversity king of NC. However, Charlotte should be mentioned based on the larger number of folks. Also, the size of these counties is yet another factor. Durham county has 290 sq/mi while Meck county has 526 sq/mi. What this means is that Durham county has fewer distant suburbs than Meck (diversity tends to drop off rapidly as one travels farther away from the central city). This would also explain why Durham's much larger neighbor (Wake) is nearly two-thirds white (832 sq/mi county; ie more suburban/rural areas with less diversity).

With that said, I noticed that the city of Charlotte and Durham county are almost identical in land area. The city of Charlotte is 45% non-Hispanic whites, 13% Hispanics, and 35% black (diversity went up when we got rid of nearly 230 sq/mi of suburbs).
Minorities now in the majority in Charlotte | CharlotteObserver.com & The Charlotte Observer Newspaper (http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/03/20/2155729/minorities-now-in-the-majority.html - broken link)

[LLN]

Heck, look at Bertie County.... Just goes to show how inane a question it is. I could look farther and probably find a county in the east that is 50/50, but I doubt that would fit your definition of diverse.

I know I won't make it to the day, but when we get to the "post-race age," it will be blissful. Still today, too many people carrying too much baggage with their eye in that rear view mirror. And I feel sorry for them.

White persons, percent, 2010 (a) 35.2% 68.5%
Black persons, percent, 2010 (a) 62.5% 21.5%
American Indian and Alaska Native persons, percent, 2010 (a) 0.5% 1.3%
Asian persons, percent, 2010 (a) 0.5% 2.2%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, percent, 2010 (a) Z 0.1%
Persons reporting two or more races, percent, 2010 0.9% 2.2%
Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin, percent, 2010 (b) 1.3% 8.4%
White persons not Hispanic, persons, 2010 34.7% 65.3%

[urbancharlotte]

Originally Posted by LLN

Heck, look at Bertie County.... Just goes to show how inane a question it is. I could look farther and probably find a county in the east that is 50/50, but I doubt that would fit your definition of diverse.

And THAT's exactly why the east isn't considered diverse. 50/50 of what? Whites and blacks. America is made up of more than just whites and blacks. Look at the Asian and Hispanic populations of Durham and Meck county. Nearly 20% of Meck and Durham aren't black/white (which is diverse by NC standards). Diversity is 45/30/15/10 not 50/50. As for Bertie county, 98% of that county belongs to only two races. Also, Bertie is a 700 sq/mi county of only 21,282. The Asian population of counties such as Meck and Wake are twice as large as Bertie's total population. Then again, if 98% black/white is your idea of diversity, then I guess we can add Bertie to the list.

[NM posts]

Originally Posted by Rwarky

Least diverse area: Wilmington (excluding tourists)

That's weird - why do you say that? I'm just curious.

Hmm, maybe you're right and just where I live is a more diverse area of Wilmington:

POPULATION DEMOGRAPHICS AND DIVERSITY:
Share of Population by Race/Ethnicity

2000 2010
Hispanic 2000 2010 2.5% 5.4%
Non-Hispanic White 2000 2010 78.4% 77.6%
Non-Hispanic Black 2000 2010 17.1% 14.0%
Non-Hispanic American Indian 2000 2010 0.4% 0.5%
Non-Hispanic Other Race 2000 2010 0.1% 0.1%
Non-Hispanic Multi-Racial 2000 2010 0.9% 1.5%
Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac. Islander 2000 2010 0.6% 0.9%
Definition: Metropolitan area totals summed from counties.


Wilmington, NC - Profiles - Diversity Data - Metropolitan Quality of Life Data

Wilmington has a very creepy racial history, unfortunately - the 1898 massacre kicked that off.

[Recip]

Are you looking for diversity based on basic population numbers are are you looking at integration?

[ZeusAV]

Almost every county in Eastern NC is 50/50 Black/White. Everyone lives in their section of town, no diversity at all and very few of other races except for a few Hispanics. So glad to be out of that area.

Charlotte and Raleigh seem to be the most diverse to me.

[Rwarky]

Originally Posted by Recip

Are you looking for diversity based on basic population numbers are are you looking at integration?

Integration and the percentage of different races and ethnicities.