According to the 2000 Census, there are about 4,337 Dominican people living in Philadelphia. Almost all of the immigrants from the Dominican Republic live in North Philadelphia in the Hartranft, West Kensington, Fairhill, Harrowgate, Richmond, Hunting Park, Juniata Park/Feltonville, Logan/Fern Rock, and Olney neighborhoods. However, there are also some small concentrations of Dominicans living in West and Northeast Philadelphia.

There were very few people from the Dominican Republic living in Philadelphia before the year 1990. Since then, the Dominican population has been growing rapidly. Unlike some immigrant communities in Philadelphia, Dominicans tend to move to here from New York, not directly from the Dominican Republic. A significant number of Dominicans come to Philadelphia in search of work, safe neighborhoods, and affordable housing (which is especially difficult to find in New York). After coming to the city, some have opened bodegas (small shops), travel agencies, and other businesses in and outside of North Philadelphia. Currently, the growth of the Dominican population can be attributed to at least two causes. The first cause is people moving to Philadelphia to be reunited with their families. The second cause is people moving to Philadelphia in search of economic opportunities and higher education.

The Dominicans in Philadelphia are a generally tightly knit group in Philadelphia. However, it is a part of the larger Latino community. The Latino people make some great contributions to the city of Philadelphia, and at times could use some support. One organization that supports this community is Congreso de Latinos Unidos. Congreso offers a broad range of services including the first Latina domestic violence program, as well as HIV prevention and case management services. Congreso is strengthening the Puerto Rican (and otherwise Latino) community in part because of partnerships with government agencies, health providers, labor organizations, businesses, and other community-based institutions. The Lighthouse is another organization that supports the Latino community in Philadelphia. This group has been serving the multicultural population of Philadelphia since the late 1800's. It provides services such as day care, before - and after - school care, and a food share program, educational, occupational, cultural, and recreational programs, an Adult Educational Program & ESL, an Economic Development Program, a Teen Parenting Education and Employment Program, and a Young Parenting Fathers Program.

To find more information on Philadelphians from the Dominican Republic and the programs that support them, please visit:

Congreso
http://www.congreso.net/
Congreso's website includes information on the programs that it provides, relevant news, available jobs, information on the community it serves, and its funders.

Latino Philadelphia
http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=103
This is a profile of the Latino community of Philadelphia, created by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. It has a variety of information such as what it means to be Latino/Latina, Latino history in Philadelphia, what it is like to be an immigrant in Philadelphia, community resources, cultural expressions, and more.

"Recent Trends in Immigration to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania" by Fels Institute of Government at Univeristy of Penn
http://www.sas.upenn.edu/fels/philapopulation.htm
This document contains a brief history of the immigration patterns of this population in Philadelphia, why this population came here, and what parts of the city they live in now.

The World Fact Book
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
This CIA website contains an extremely large amount of information about all of the countries in the world such as: history, geography, information about its citizens, government, economy, transnational issues, and more. To find out information about this country, pull it down from the menu.

Centro Nueva Creación
http://www.centronueva.org/
Centro Nueva Creación's website has information on its programs, has relevant news, the organization's history, and more.

"Latinos in the United States: Where Are We From?"
http://www.nahj.org/resourceguide/chapter_3.html
This website was created by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. This section of the website contains information on various Latin American countries, and why their citizens have moved to the US