ABSTRACT
Over 31 million people residing in the United States are recent immigrants.2 According the last official census taken in 2000, the immigrant population grew by 57 percent between 1990 and 2000, and it continues to rise.3 The immigrant group has changed substantially over the past decade, particularly in terms of ethnic composition. Due in large part to accelerating levels of immigration from Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America, Hispanic immigrants now represent the largest minority group in the United States.
