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Mexicans may no longer represent majority of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S.

A Border Patrol agent looks over the town of Anapra, Mexico, along a border fence near the border with Sunland Park, N.M., on Thursday, September 26, 2013. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

Credit: Hyosub Shin

Credit: Hyosub Shin

A Border Patrol agent looks over the town of Anapra, Mexico, along a border fence near the border with Sunland Park, N.M., on Thursday, September 26, 2013. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM
By
April 27, 2017

Mexicans may no longer represent the majority of the estimated 11.3 million unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S., a new report shows.

Based on U.S. census records, the Pew Research Center says Mexicans made up about half of the total last year, down from their peak of 57 percent in 2007. Their numbers have been declining since that year.

RELATED: Report: Georgia’s population of immigrants without legal status falls

Meanwhile, the number of unauthorized immigrants from other regions has increased. Central Americans grew by 180,000 between 2009 and 2015, while Asians jumped by 220,000 in the same period.

RELATED: Five Georgia companies signal interest in Trump’s border wall project

Georgia was home to an estimated 375,000 unauthorized immigrants in 2014. Of that number, 56 percent were from Mexico.

About the Author

Jeremy Redmon is an award-winning journalist, essayist and educator with more than three decades of experience reporting for newspapers. He has written for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 2005.

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