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If you are the sort of person who is deeply worried about the shifting racial demographics of the United States (i.e., a racist), a bit of a reality check: It is partly your fault. Last year, for apparently the first time, more non-Hispanic white people died than were born. Other trends confirmed by the Census compilation of population estimates for the year 2012 were expected: the U.S. population is shifting to the Southwest, getting older, with more people moving to cities. But the point about white population decline was probably the most surprising.

The Washington Post reports on what that shift looks like.

Population estimates for 2012 released Thursday show what’s known as a natural decrease — a straightforward calculation of births minus deaths — of about 12,400 people among the nation’s 198 million non-Hispanic whites.



Although the percentage is small, several demographers said they are not aware of another time in U.S. history — not even during the Depression or wars — when there was such shrinkage among the dominant racial group. No other group showed a similar falloff.

Here's how it goes by racial group:

