If you're considering moving to East Palo Alto, California, it's important to understand the city's demographics. The city is comprised of approximately two and a half square miles. The city was a hard-hit spot for the crack epidemic in the 1980s, when it was ranked the murder capital of the nation. When it became a city 17 years ago, it was a predominantly black community. Today, the population is composed of 53 percent Latino, 36 percent African American, and 8 percent Asian.
The city has a general law council/manager form of government. A five-member council and a mayor are elected to lead the city. East Palo Alto has a high educational attainment rate for its population of 25 and older. Aside from being a college town, East Palo Alto is home to several major companies. A population of over one hundred thousand people is also considered a "bedroom community," with one family earning over $600,000 per year.
In 1990, over half of the population of East Palo Alto was African American, but this changed with the influx of white people and Asian flower growers. In the post-war period, Asian flower growers and Chinese laborers populated the city. In the 1960s, East Palo Alto became the largest African American community in the peninsula. Today, East Palo Alto has a cosmopolitan, multi-ethnic population, with a majority of Pacific Islanders, Hispanics, and people of Indo-Fijian descent.