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It's funny that a lot of non-white Hispanics will readily consider themselves white but NOT any other race. Racial classifications aren't based upon percentages of genetic lineages anyway. After all, you need to undergo a DNA test to figure that out. Barack Obama is directly biracial. Should he consider himself a white man just because he's got a white parent? Should we discount the fact he doesn't look like anything but a black man?
Again, exactly what percentage of European DNA does someone need to have before you can call them white? 50%? 66%? 75%? Please tell me. And if not based upon DNA, which is at least objective, how are we to determine who is white and who isn't?
Obama being considered to look black and not white when he's a 50/50 mix is mostly due to the history of one-droppism in the U.S. Look at some half white/half Asian people like Jennifer Tilly, Karen O, and Vanessa Hudgens. They certainly "pass" for white much easier than someone half (or arguably even a quarter) black does.
Didn't you already start a thread like this elsewhere on the forum? Anyway, I'm Hispanic but I've never heard anyone describe Hispanic as a race. I think most people understand full well that Hispanic is an ethnicity. You or your heritage comes from Latin America, therefore that makes you Hispanic. No need to "drop" the term.
And it's actually Hispanics who seem to be confused about race. The reason why the percentage of whites in America was so high (72%) as per the 2010 census is because a lot of Mexicans in the southwest and Puerto Ricans/Dominicans in the northeast described their race as "white" when clearly many of them are not.
As was pointed out by some other posts, in the West 90% of the time Hispanic means Mexican and many Mexicans/Chicanos refer to themselves as "La Raza" (the race). I've heard often from Latinos that Mestizo (brown) is a new race created from White and Native American.
Legally speaking, Hispanics have basically never been considered a race. The last Census did not consider Hispanic/Latino a race, but a separate box you check along with your race. IIRC except for the 1930 census (which had Mexican as a race) they were always considered white on the Census historically speaking. Unlike Blacks, Asians, and Native Americans they were never subject to any Jim Crow laws, they never attended segregated schools, could always intermarry with Anglos, and had property rights which were mostly unimpeded by restrictive covenants. That isn't to say that there wasn't some animus against them at various times in U.S. history, but it was no worse than many European immigrant groups had. For example, in 1900 or so Finns were not allowed to vote in Minnesota (on the grounds of purported "Mongol ancestry" but Hispanics were.
Colloquially speaking, I think it varies a lot depending upon the part of the country you're in. I think that the idea Hispanic is a "race" is more common in the West, where most Hispanics are Mexican or Central American, and have a similar (e.g., Mestizo) look. I think it's less common on the East Coast, because people have experience with Latinos who look white and black as well. So while it might be considered a large "family" of ethnic groups, it's not seen as a race thing.
I also think that any idea that Latino is a race is going to ultimately be transitory. I have friends who were adopted as children from Columbia, and don't speak a lick of Spanish. Socially speaking, they "pass" as white perfectly. More and more people will be in this position as we get to 3rd/4th generation Hispanics, particularly ones who are half Anglo (or something else).
It's also worth noting that race in the social sense is different from race in the genetic sense anyway. I mean, there are some black Americans who are actually 50% or more white in terms of their DNA, but they still identify as being black rather than white due to their upbringing. Who are we to say they are wrong about their self identity?
That's simply not true. Yes, many Hispanics are fair-complected and even grew up speaking English (indeed, some even learn Spanish as a second language) but even though Jim Crow laws technically did not bind to Latinos/Natives/Asians/Jews etc in the way they applied to African Americans, the de facto segregation (it may even have been fully legal in Texas) they endured was still very real.
La Raza is directly tied to the White House. Cecilia Munoz, former senior vice president of La Raza, now serves as director of the White House Domestic Policy Council with specific focus on immigration issues.
Hispanic isn't a race you're either White, Black, Asian or Indian/Native American..right? Hispanic/Latino is a CULTURE, a way of life. Anyone can be Hispanic/latino. That's why on the census they put "Hispanic of ANY race". I know im Brazilian but that's not my race that's my origin and culture. I always put either black/mixed or Latino of any race.
Didn't you already start a thread like this elsewhere on the forum? Anyway, I'm Hispanic but I've never heard anyone describe Hispanic as a race. I think most people understand full well that Hispanic is an ethnicity. You or your heritage comes from Latin America, therefore that makes you Hispanic. No need to "drop" the term.
And it's actually Hispanics who seem to be confused about race. The reason why the percentage of whites in America was so high (72%) as per the 2010 census is because a lot of Mexicans in the southwest and Puerto Ricans/Dominicans in the northeast described their race as "white" when clearly many of them are not.
I don't think people are trying to be something they are not. It is that the whole 'race' category is confusing to Latin Americans because we are a mixture of races and the outcomes are so varied. In one family alone you can get varying looks- Everyone in my immediate family(Mexican) look so different that people have asked more than once if we were a foster home. Not kidding.
Also, how do you delineate who is White? If I am dark skinned and my sister has blondish hair and green eyes, is it 'correct' for her to mark White but not I, even though we have the same family lines, which are a majority European? That is where it gets weird and tricky.
As was pointed out by some other posts, in the West 90% of the time Hispanic means Mexican and many Mexicans/Chicanos refer to themselves as "La Raza" (the race). I've heard often from Latinos that Mestizo (brown) is a new race created from White and Native American.
That is more a colloquial term to denote 'my people.' Kind of like saying mi gente.
No one in my family or circle of friends has ever used that term, so not everyone out in 'the West' believes that idea.
Mexican-Americans who consider themselves a race are confused. Then they become ignorant and have a hard time accepting that Mexico is a multicultural country, and there are White, Asian and even Black Mexicans.
Also, how do you delineate who is White? If I am dark skinned and my sister has blondish hair and green eyes, is it 'correct' for her to mark White but not I, even though we have the same family lines, which are a majority European? That is where it gets weird and tricky.
Hispanics always say that. "My mother has green eyes and red hair, etc" and you actually see the person for yourself and they don't look like a white person. A Rubia in Latin America dentoes someone with even the slightest tinge of light hair, that wouldn't be considered even close to a blonde by actual white people in America, Britain or Australia, or Germany. And they can't wait to tell you about their Spanish grandmother.
In most of Latin America like Mexico the percentage although they claim ridiculous numbers of whites like 10%. In reality more like 1-2%, maybe even 3-5% of the population and always the little elite that controls all the wealth. Well over 90% of Hispanics are not white, period. I don't know why so many want so desperately to be white. Lots of "black" people in America are majority European, but they don't go around trying to claim how white they are. A very small percentage of Hispanics are white, and the only areas with large concentrations are the regions like southern Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. And even still these people are Latin whites, not really like "white" people in America who are usually British, German, Dutch, etc.. They look very different, are much shorter, etc.
White People:
Not white:
It really is so simple. I don't see what's so hard to get, or why some want to reject what they are to be something they aren't.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rosa surf
That is more a colloquial term to denote 'my people.' Kind of like saying mi gente.
No one in my family or circle of friends has ever used that term, so not everyone out in 'the West' believes that idea.
Mexican-Americans who consider themselves a race are confused. Then they become ignorant and have a hard time accepting that Mexico is a multicultural country, and there are White, Asian and even Black Mexicans.
No they aren't. They immigrated to America. They are doing the right thing and trying to become part of American society. In our society there is a concept of white people. Mexican Americans who want to keep being Mexican should just stay in Mexico. I don't get what's hard to understand. If you immigrate to someone's country, you adopt their culture and values. There is a whole country of Mexican values: it's called Mexico. If you want to live in America with the benefits of American culture (first world economy, for example) then you have to become culturally American.
Hispanics always say that. "My mother has green eyes and red hair, etc" and you actually see the person for yourself and they don't look like a white person. A Rubia in Latin America dentoes someone with even the slightest tinge of light hair, that wouldn't be considered even close to a blonde by actual white people in America, Britain or Australia, or Germany. And they can't wait to tell you about their Spanish grandmother.
In most of Latin America like Mexico the percentage although they claim ridiculous numbers of whites like 10%. In reality more like 1-2%, maybe even 3-5% of the population and always the little elite that controls all the wealth. Well over 90% of Hispanics are not white, period. I don't know why so many want so desperately to be white. Lots of "black" people in America are majority European, but they don't go around trying to claim how white they are. A very small percentage of Hispanics are white, and the only areas with large concentrations are the regions like southern Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. And even still these people are Latin whites, not really like "white" people in America who are usually British, German, Dutch, etc.. They look very different, are much shorter, etc.
White People:
Not white:
It really is so simple. I don't see what's so hard to get, or why some want to reject what they are to be something they aren't.
No they aren't. They immigrated to America. They are doing the right thing and trying to become part of American society. In our society there is a concept of white people. Mexican Americans who want to keep being Mexican should just stay in Mexico. I don't get what's hard to understand. If you immigrate to someone's country, you adopt their culture and values. There is a whole country of Mexican values: it's called Mexico. If you want to live in America with the benefits of American culture (first world economy, for example) then you have to become culturally American.
I don't know how Mexico gets its race stats but I'm sure they are about as ****-poor as the USA's. In the US, a White man can be a Swede, but he can also be an Algerian or a Palestinian. So even if Mexico's "white" figures are overinflated, so are the USA's. Because it can mean whatever you want it to mean.
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