I made a slight oversight -- Washington DC also lost population ( but the is DC a state ?). Louisiana surprisingly, inspite of Katrina, still registered a slight population growth.
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I think that alot of the pop. loss in Mass and RI is connected to the lower birth rates among whites
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What about New York ? I can't speak for the Upstate folks, but the 8 million who live around the 5 burroaghs of NYC and Long Island are still majority white but NOT overwhelmingly white.
My guess is that there is a lot of White flight to other states, only to be replaced by immigrants from elsewhere. The immigrants coming to the USA still come to NY, but it is not as large a number as before ( heck, when there are other states you can go to, NY isn't the only place you set your foot on ). Hence, I'd guess that the flight interstate slightly outnumbered the immigrants coming to NYC.
I understand your point, but alot of that "white flight" is a result of baby boomers retiring to the usual places, not necessarily young college graduates moving elsewhere. You may be right, though.
And remember, combine the retirement of baby boomers to lower birth rates now, and you see a loss in population.
Personally, I welcome it. I think one of the biggest, if not the biggest mistake we have made as a nation is overdevelopment combined with massive levels of immigration. I am generally pro-immigration, but I think we have our priorities wrong. Our gov't tends to favor cheap labor over skilled workers.
Actually a lot of it, in all the NE is folks moving south and west for better jobs, and Boomers cashing out in the overheated real estate markets and moving where its warmer and cheaper to retire.