EMBARGOED UNTIL: 12:01 A.M. EDT, JULY 30, 1998 (THURSDAY) Public Information Office CB98-127 301-457-3030/301-457-3670 (fax) 301-457-4067 (TDD) e-mail: pio@census.gov Kymberly DeBarros/ Claudette Bennett 301-457-2402 Black Population Surpasses 34 Million, Census Bureau Reports African Americans numbered about 34.2 million in 1997, making up 12.8 percent of the total U.S. population, according to tabulations released today by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. (The embargoed tabulations can be accessed at http://www.census.gov/dcmd/www/embargo/embargo.html. After the release time, go to http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/race/black.html. The report, The Black Population in the United States: March 1997 (Update), P20-508, includes data on characteristics of the African American population such as marital status, educational attainment and income. Some highlights: - In 1997, there were about 8.5 million African American families, 46 percent of whom were married-couple families. - About 74 percent of African Americans 25 years old and over had at least a high school education; about 14 percent had at least a bachelor's degree. - In 1996, African American families had a real median income of $26,520. - The income of 2.1 million African American families (26 percent) was below the poverty level. Data are from the March supplement to the 1997 Current Population Survey. As in all surveys, the data are subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Editor's Note: The Public Information Office now has a media-access server for embargoed news releases and data sets. It is available to accredited media representatives only. To gain access, please contact us for a username and password. The media-access server's Internet address is http://www.census.gov/dcmd/www/embargo/embargo.html. We would appreciate any comments you may have about the site. The Census Bureau pre-eminent collector and provider of timely, relevant and quality data about the people and economy of the United States. In more than 100 surveys annually and 20 censuses a decade, evolving from the first census in 1790, the Census Bureau provides official information about America's people, businesses, industries and institutions.
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