Orange County Population

In 1967, Stokely Carmichael and Charles Hamilton, in their book titled "Black Power: The Politics of Liberation in America," defined racism as being " . . . the predication of decisions and policies on consideration of race for the purpose of subordinating a racial group." With this factor as a foundation for liberation within the black community, there is the productivity of progress predicated upon the dogma of victimization.

White residents of Orange County will not only become a minority during the first half of the new century, but their actual numbers will decline as well, new state figures predict. At the same time, according to projections released Thursday by the state Finance Department, the number of Hispanic residents will increase dramatically to make up nearly half the county population, and those of Asian descent will make significant gains.

The Latino population in Orange County will surpass that of whites by the year 2020, as the rapid growth that has marked postwar Orange County tapers off considerably over the next two decades, according to a demographic study released Tuesday. Latinos and whites will each make up about 41% of the county population, with slightly more Latinos. In 1995, the county was 59% white and 27% Latino. Asians made up 12% of the population in 1995 and will make up an estimated 15% in the year 2020.

It was largely the loss of military personnel that took the population down by 700 people, city officials say. In any case, their departure has apparently been so quiet that few people in the city knew they had gone, or where, or why. "It's certainly not because of our food," said Maryann Trasport, who, with her husband, Amel, runs the Pittsburgh Broasted and Flame Broiled Chicken and Seafood shop on Katella near Bloomfield.

When Kate and Tim Somerset moved to Hawaii about eight years ago, they were part of the great exodus of Californians pursuing a better life outside the Golden State. A year and a half ago the Somersets--plus two children-- returned, settling in Orange County and feeding another statistical surge: the fourth-largest population gain in the nation.

When Orange County public health worker Minh Luyen asks Vietnamese tuberculosis patients why they are not taking their medicine, they often complain that it makes them feel too hot. Their culture, she notes, values a balance of cold and heat. Luyen does not argue but strongly recommends that they take their daily dose of pills and then cool off by drinking lots of water and eating fruit and vegetables.

At 7 p.m. on Night One of the Los Angeles riots, Cheoljin Chung closed his liquor store on Florence Avenue just east of Normandie and started driving home. When his car telephone rang, he picked it up to hear his wife tell him his liquor store was burning, live, on television. Now Chung is waiting for the $100,000 insurance check to cover the booze that burned. He plans to buy another business--this time in Orange County. "I don't like the South L.A. area," he says, "and I am not going back."

The housing vise began squeezing Francisco Morales seven years ago, and it hasn't let up. Morales and his family shared a three-bedroom house in Santa Ana with five other people until rent hikes and cramped conditions forced them to seek better quarters in the mid-1990s. Their situation hasn't improved much.

James Porter of Costa Mesa keenly wanted to find other black residents in Orange County. An outgoing family man born and raised in Los Angeles, the 34-year-old social services worker missed the camaraderie of being with people who shared his cultural heritage. He decided to reach out by using his favorite social activity--bowling. "I got tired of looking for and wanting black people to come out," he said. "I'm an avid bowler, and I wanted to see if there are any black bowlers in Orange County.