With a population of 2.3 million people, Houston has been described as the most racially and ethnically diverse major metropolis in the country. The city’s economy has a broad industrial base in energy, manufacturing, aeronautics and transportation. Houston has the second-most Fortune 500 headquarters of any U.S. city. Houston is a city where the population is more than 50 percent people of color: 43.9 percent Latino, 22.7 percent black and 25.5 percent white.

Over the last two decades, Houston has experienced a 10 percent decline in its white population while its Latino population has grown over 25 percent. There are an estimated 600,000 undocumented immigrants in the Houston area, comprising nearly 9 percent of the city’s metropolitan population. The median hourly wage for white workers is $30 per hour while people of color only earn $15 per hour. Today, 37 percent of its jobs require some college education. While 65 percent of white workers meet this requirement, only 27 percent of black workers and 25 percent of Latino workers have the necessary education to compete. In Houston, we held three focus groups composed of white, black and Latino residents all under the age of 35. Learn more by reading the full report.