Blurred Borders - International Community Foundation

San Diego
Cities
Table 10
Comparison between San Diego Census 2000 and
Texas Border Kids Count 2003
TOTAL
Population
Percent
Hispanic
Percent
Non Hisp.
High
School
Drop Out
26
Percent
Families
Below Poverty
w/children
under 18
Median
Household
Income
Logan Heights 2,616 91% 9% 26% 38% $ 22,802.00
National City
Southeast
2,960 46% 54% 20% 18% $ 39,792.00
S.D. 4,547 55% 45% 20% 8% $ 42,917.00
San Marcos 4,665 61% 39% 21% 15% $ 41,995.00
San Ysidro 5,547 96% 4% 18% 39%
Percent Latino
$ 20,401.00
High Children Median
Texas TOTAL Percent Percent School Living in Household
Counties
Culberson
Popul. Hispanic Non Hisp. Drop Out Poverty Income
Co. 2,975 72% 28% 15% 35% $ 25,882.00
Hudspeth Co. 3,344 75% 25% 11% 46% $ 21,045.00
Jim Hogg Co. 5,281 91% 9% 3% 31% $ 25,833.00
Presidio Co. 7,304 84% 16% 16% 46% $ 19,860.00
Brooks Co. 7,976 92% 8% 20% 52% $ 18,622.00
www.census.gov; http://www.fedstats.gov/qf/states/48/48109.html
Taken as a whole, the Carnegie Endowment for Peace’s assessment is correct: San Diego is a
comparatively more affluent community than all other border communities. Nevertheless, it is
important to recognize that San Diego County is a vast and diverse county the size of the State
of Connecticut (4,845.4 square miles). As Table 10 demonstrates, there are several San Diego
communities with poverty levels at or above the levels found in many Texas border
communities. It is also worth noting that in many cases specific San Diego communities such as
San Ysidro or Southeast San Diego are larger than many Texas Counties in terms of their total
population. Therefore, when comparing San Diego against other border communities it is
important not to generalize. As the community-based statistics reveal, “America’s Finest City”
is experiencing growing poverty in communities with residents that are predominantly of
Mexican origin.