San Antonio's Predominantly Hispanic Mix Doesn't Add Up to Political Clout

SAN ANTONIO (By John W. Gonzalez, Houston Chronicle) November 14, 2005 — Demographers say this predominantly Hispanic city already reflects the population mix that the rest of Texas is destined to show by 2030.

A U.S. Census Bureau estimate released last month said Hispanics, blacks and others now make up the majority of Texans. San Antonio, with a 56 percent Hispanic population, is only 34 percent Anglo, the data said.

The announcement came as no surprise to demographers, but some Anglos seemed shocked. As one blogger lamented: "What was the point of fighting at the Alamo?"

But even though the Alamo City is steeped in centuries of Spanish and Mexican history and culture, its power structure remains heavily influenced — if not dominated — by the city's Anglo minority.

That incongruity causes some Hispanics to wonder whether their swelling numbers really bring long-awaited political, social and economic power.

Yet, the power disparity hasn't produced the kinds of racial or ethnic rivalries that divide some communities, experts said.

Founded in 1718, San Antonio is "a very integrated town and we have been from day one," said Mayor Phil Hardberger, who took office in June after outpolling an Hispanic runoff opponent. The former judge leads an 11-member council that has seven Hispanics and blacks.

Because San Antonio was colonized by Spaniards and then settled by Anglos, Hardberger said "we go back a long way, being able to live with each other in relative harmony and peace. In that sense, I do think that we are a role model for the rest of the nation."

While acknowledging public concerns about immigration's role in local population growth, Hardberger said it's wrong to assume newcomers place the interests of their native countries above hometown and U.S. interests, and he said it's not true that immigrants refuse to adopt English.

"People who have been here very long are Americans first and should be treated that way, regardless of what their country of origin may be," he added.

Despite the city's reputation for racial harmony, Hardberger said, "there's probably been a bit of racism since the first time one person looked at another person that didn't look like them."

"And clearly there are people with racist thoughts," Hardberger said, referring to some of the harsh reactions when the Census Bureau announced that Anglos no longer comprise a majority of Texans.

University of Houston Professor Tatcho Mindiola, director of the UH Center for Mexican American Studies, said the new numbers don't signal a dramatic shift in the state's power structure.

"Even though we are the majority numerically, that doesn't easily translate to power. Anglos still have most of the power in the state — political, economic, cultural and so forth," he said.

Large numbers of Hispanics aren't citizens or choose not to vote, but when they do get involved, they can make a difference, Mindiola said.

"The only significant change I've seen in my lifetime has been the complete takeover of the counties in South Texas where we were in the majority for many years," he said.

"But has the situation really changed down there?" he asked.

Mindiola said another vexing question is: "How long will it take for this majority population to become the political force that everyone has been predicting would come for 50 years?"

In addition to Texas, Hawaii, New Mexico and California, the District of Columbia now has a "majority-minority" makeup, according to the Census Bureau. Five states with 40 percent minority populations — Maryland, Mississippi, Georgia, New York and Arizona — could pass the 50 percent mark by the next head count in 2010, the bureau said.

"There's something very symbolic here. Fifty-percent crossover, for whatever reason, has really impacted some people on the fringes," said state demographer Steve Murdock.

"Part of what's really extraordinary about that is Hispanics have been a large part of culture forever. Many of them were here before the Anglos were," Murdock said.

Even so, San Antonio traditionally has been led by Anglos, he said.

"If I were to list the power structure of the top 25 people in San Antonio, it would certainly not reflect the proportions of the population. There would be more Anglos than there would be others," Murdock said.

"But at the same time, probably most people would put people like Henry Cisneros in that group, or the former mayor (Ed Garza), or somebody like (car dealer) Ernesto Ancira. Certainly Hispanics are much more a major part of the business community than they are in most other cities," Murdock said.

J. Eric Lomeli, a geographic information systems demographer at the University of Texas at San Antonio, said experts were "not at all surprised" by the Census estimate.

Data released Aug. 11 showed 11.2 million non-Hispanic whites in Texas compared with 11.3 million Hispanics, blacks and others. Minority groups comprised 50.2 percent of the state total — up from 47 percent in 2000.

"Whoever has been following the numbers for the past few years knows that Texas is actually the microcosm of the U.S. in the next two decades," Lomeli said.

Harris County has the state's largest concentration of Hispanics — 1.3 million; followed by Bexar County, with 842,605; and Dallas County, 808,576.

"If you're wondering what the USA that your children or grandchildren — depending on your age — will look like, all you need to do is look around because in a very real sense, the Texas of today is the USA of tomorrow," Murdock said.