U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves released a 2010 Census brief on the American Indian and Alaska Native population (PDF) yesterday and joined an expert panel in addressing the current social and economic impact of this population and at a forum held at the National Museum of the American Indian. The event highlighted statistics from the 2010 Census, providing a portrait of the American Indian and Alaska Native population in the U.S. and its size and growth at various geographic levels.

The brief, The American Indian and Alaska Native Population: 2010, shows almost half (44 percent) of this population, or 2.3 million people, reported being American Indian and Alaska Native in combination with one or more other races. This multiracial group grew by 39 percent from 2000 to 2010.  Census infograph

Overall, 5.2 million people, or 1.7 percent of all people in the United States, identified as American Indian and Alaska Native, either alone or in combination with one or more races. This population grew by 27 percent from 2000 to 2010. Those who reported being American Indian and Alaska Native alone totaled 2.9 million, an increase of 18 percent from 2000 to 2010. The multiple race American Indian and Alaska Native population, as well as both the alone and alone-or-in-combination populations, all grew at a faster rate than the total U.S. population, which increased by 9.7 percent from 2000 to 2010.   Census press release | Census infograph