We the people

I'm currently on a 18 day vacation to D.C. and various parts of Florida. Our family just spent 4 days sightseeing in Washington D.C. One thing our Midwestern kids have noticed is the racial and ethnic diversity of the city. Whether it was at our hotel in Alexandria, VA, where we were staying, the Metro trips into D.C., or our experiences in D.C., our children commented often about the mix of people they encountered. African American, Asian, Hispanic, White. Multiple languages being heard around us from everywhere around the globe.

This rich diversity has caused reflection, then, as I walked through the halls of history and learned more about the founding of our country, the history of slavery, the wars fought, the leadership and decisions made. We had an interesting tour of the U.S. Capitol, and as a part of it, we were able to sit in the gallery of the U.S. Senate Chamber. I looked down from the balcony at our senators as they wandered around the room during a vote. As I looked at this group of decision makers, it was quite a visual contrast to the mix of people we had been observing all around us in the community. It made me curious to find out the make up of our Congress. See below to see the composition of the 112th Congress.

Racial Composition
*Caucasians/Whites: 362 (83.22%)
*African Americans/Blacks: 42 (9.66%)
*Hispanics/Latinos: 24 (5.52%)
*Asians: 6 (1.38%)
*Native Americans: 1 (0.23%)

Racial Composition by Gender & Party
*Caucasians
*Men: 314 (210 R - 104 D)
*Women: 48 (26 D - 22 R)
*African Americans
*Men: 29 (27 D - 2 R)
*Women: 13 (13 D - 0 R)
*Hispanics
*Men: 17 (12 D - 5 R)
*Women: 7 (5 D - 2 R)
*Asians
*Men: 2 (2 D - 0 R)
*Women: 4 (4 D - 0 R)
*Native Americans
*Men: 1 (1 R - 0 D)
*Women: 0