Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
In absolute numbers, is the US Congress one of the most diverse legislatures among Western democracies?
Monday, July 20, 2020
By Claire Zimmerman
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YES
In absolute numbers, the current U.S. Congress, with 22% of members from non-white backgrounds, has a higher proportion of non-white members than in other large Western democracies such as Canada (15%), the U.K. (10%), Germany (8%), or France (6%).
The number in the U.S. has grown steadily over the last five elections. In relative terms, however, representation in Congress does not correspond to the ethnic mix of the country's population, estimated in 2019 to be 39% non-white. Pew Research notes that the number of Blacks in Congress, 12%, is in line with their share of the population, while Hispanics and Asians are underrepresented.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
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Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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