From Detroit to western Michigan, Latino communities are shaping a state too rarely centered in America’s Latino story.
Michigan / September 2026
The places we associate with Latino America can become a habit. Michigan invites us to look again.
Research published by Brookings on September 17 describes communities putting down roots in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Holland and rural western Michigan. Using the 2024 American Community Survey, it counts nearly 600,000 Latino residents—5.9% of the state’s population.
Businesses that build a future
The report draws on the 2023 Annual Business Survey to identify 3,256 Latino-owned employer businesses. Together, those firms employ more than 36,000 people and generate over $8.17 billion in annual revenue.
These figures describe different data years; they are not a real-time count of Michigan in 2026.
The Primo take
A statewide story becomes tangible at neighborhood scale: the work available nearby, the businesses that endure, the families able to stay. Our interest is in that relationship between community and capital—how economic participation can support a sense of belonging, and what people need to build something lasting.
Source: Brookings Metro, September 17, 2026.