Census Answers to Race

[Uncayimmy]

Why did you leave "blank" off of your poll choices? I expect that that was the first choice for people who objected to the race question.

It didn't occur to me to add it since you're required by law to complete the form. If I had thought of it, I would have added it.

 

[brantc]

Well, at least he's not quite as bad as the yahoos who write "American"

Thats what I wrote. I wrote that because they had a check box for Cuban.

And I am not white.....

 

[MikeMangum]

I'm appalled that there aren't all of the appropriate categories like:

mestizo
castizo
cholo
mulatto
zambo
espomolo
morisco
zambiago
cambujo
alvarazado
borquino

Those should definitely be added, oh, and quadroon and octaroon as well. And we would have to come up with all of the possible terms for every possible admixture of races. Let's see, what term can we come up with for a person who is one quarter Indian (subcontinent), one quarter scandinavian, one eighth native American, one eighth Polynesian, one eighth Australian aborigine, and one eighth Persian? What would the child of that person and a person who is one quarter celtic, one quarter african, one quarter arab, and one quarter slavic be called? Wait...did that one quarter African come from Bantu or Khoisan ancestors?

Hrmm, maybe the form would end up being too long. Alternatively, we could just remove the entire question.

 

[MikeMangum]

Thats what I wrote. I wrote that because they had a check box for Cuban.

And I am not white.....

I usually write American myself on those sorts of questions. The beauty of that answer is that it doesn't matter what your skin color is and yet it still allows you to self-identify. You get the point across. You don't play along with the racial divisiveness.

I guess "Northern Hemispherean" would work just as well. Apparently, according to some people on this forum, "homo erectus" would be the best response for me to make.

Although I have to admit, entering Australopithecus would be fun.

 

[ZirconBlue]

I'm appalled that there aren't all of the appropriate categories like:

mestizo
castizo
cholo
mulatto
zambo
espomolo
morisco
zambiago
cambujo
alvarazado
borquino

Those should definitely be added, oh, and quadroon and octaroon as well. And we would have to come up with all of the possible terms for every possible admixture of races. Let's see, what term can we come up with for a person who is one quarter Indian (subcontinent), one quarter scandinavian, one eighth native American, one eighth Polynesian, one eighth Australian aborigine, and one eighth Persian? What would the child of that person and a person who is one quarter celtic, one quarter african, one quarter arab, and one quarter slavic be called? Wait...did that one quarter African come from Bantu or Khoisan ancestors?

Hrmm, maybe the form would end up being too long. Alternatively, we could just remove the entire question.

Or, just leave it like it is, with all of the common answers, that people actually use to identify themselves with, included.

 

[Uncayimmy]

I guess "Northern Hemispherean" would work just as well. Apparently, according to some people on this forum, "homo erectus" would be the best response for me to make.

The proper term is Northern Hemishperican. It's also supposed to be Cubarican, not Cuban. My wife is a Hungarican.

 

[Ladewig]

I usually write American myself on those sorts of questions. The beauty of that answer is that it doesn't matter what your skin color is and yet it still allows you to self-identify. You get the point across. You don't play along with the racial divisiveness.

For a census question, do you consider racial divisiveness to be an intended or unintended consequence?

 

[Race]

So I was born in America. Does that make me a native American?

 

[MikeMangum]

For a census question, do you consider racial divisiveness to be an intended or unintended consequence?

The only question that needs to be asked on the census form is "how many people live in this residence". That's it. That's the purpose of the census; to determine how many people live in each state so that electoral votes and seats in the House of Representatives can be correctly apportioned.

 

[Dorian Gray]

Before you get all snarky, perhaps you should think for a moment about what it actually says and what I said.

1) The first part of my question that you quoted asks if I think the race questions are stupid. I believe they are stupid for precisely the reasons they give in their explanation. That they acknowledge the reasons doesn't make it any less stupid in my eyes.

2) It says that the categories are based on social and political considerations. It does not say that "race" itself is not scientific, only that these categories are not scientific. The implication is that there is, in fact, a scientific basis for race. I say there isn't, and that it's always a human social contrivance.

If you're going to be pedantic, do it right or don't do it at all.

If you're going to be pedantic, "human" wasn't one of the choices, and was most likely a basic assumption of the Census Bureau. Perhaps you should have chosen "don't do it at all".

 

[Puppycow]

So blind people know not of race? How empty their lives must be.

I don't know if that's entirely true. There are also speech cues that can be heard. I'm not claiming that you can always tell, but often simply hearing the sound of a voice can suggest the race of the speaker. (See here)

If a Caucasoid and a Mongoloid (if you can find a "pure" one of each) have a baby, what it is? If that child grows up to mate with a Negroid, what is the child? When that child grows up and mates with an Australoid, what is that child? And when that child grows up to have a baby with a Capoid, what is it? I guess I should just look at the kid and say, "Gee, it looks like a Negroid, what with the nappy hair and dark skin! But wait...look at that epicanthic fold. Surely this is a Mongoloid. Then again, that nose is definitely that of a Caucasoid."

You could call the first child bi-racial and the others multi-racial or mixed-race.

How about distinct breeds of dogs? Do you accept that a poodle is a real category (whether scientific or socially constructed) distinct from a labrador? And yet they can mate and produce an offspring called a labradoodle. And the labradoodle can mate with some other breed of dog and produce something else.

 

[Ysidro]

I used to think like the OP. I also used to play with "action figures".

 

[Jensen]

I have always wondered about the apparent need in the US to identify ones race. I can't remember any context where I have ever been required to identify myself as belonging to a certain race. (Only possible exception is maybe some form needed to enter the US ) My eye color however is noted in my passport, I guess that's because it isn't apparent from the picture.

What's up with that race fetish of yours?

 

[Harpyja]

I can't really think of a way of putting it better than Puppycow did, but I'd like to add that certain races have increased chances of heart disease, etc. So there are good reasons why the government would want to know this.

 

[ZirconBlue]

So I was born in America. Does that make me a native American?

No.

 

[Jensen]

... certain races have increased chances of heart disease, etc. So there are good reasons why the government would want to know this.

Does the government in the Land of the Free also keep track of other factors that can influence your personal health? Eating habits? Dangerous hobbies? Tendency to ware too little cloths in the winter?

 

[applecorped]

I didn't.

 

[Ladewig]

The only question that needs to be asked on the census form is "how many people live in this residence". That's it. That's the purpose of the census; to determine how many people live in each state so that electoral votes and seats in the House of Representatives can be correctly apportioned.

You said that answering the race question is "play[ing] along with the racial divisiveness." I would still like to know if you consider this racial divisiveness to be intentional on the part of the government or unintentional.

 

[Ladewig]

I have always wondered about the apparent need in the US to identify ones race. I can't remember any context where I have ever been required to identify myself as belonging to a certain race. (Only possible exception is maybe some form needed to enter the US ) My eye color however is noted in my passport, I guess that's because it isn't apparent from the picture.

What's up with that race fetish of yours?

The reason it is relevant today is that there still is some virulent racism in the U.S. By noting the racial demographics of local populations, the government can get a better handle on businesses that discriminate in their hiring practices.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

I can't really think of a way of putting it better than Puppycow did, but I'd like to add that certain races have increased chances of heart disease, etc. So there are good reasons why the government would want to know this.

What would be the good reason for the government to know that, and why should the census bureau be collecting that information ?