Hispanics Outnumber Blacks! So What?

The Census Bureau reports that Hispanics are now the largest minority group in the United States, numbering 37 million to 35.5 million blacks. Or are they? After all "minority groups" are simply official creations by the Federal government. Given the power of the great American assimilation machine, Hispanics are as likely to remain a separate ethnic group as the Irish, the Italians, the Poles, and so on and so forth. Even the black/white line is being erased via rising rates of intermarriage. Whites may no longer be a majority in 2050, but I'm betting that the real majority will simply be Americans without any hyphens.

Comments

[Derek]

ron: bad "assimilation machine" link.

[Jim]

I think Yuri makes a really good point about the process of racial integration (or perhaps disintegration, if you prefer) has worked historically and how the well-intended efforts to 'help' it along have actually become an impediment.

I tried arguing once on a college schollarship ap that being a person of Danish/Polish/English/Norwegian decent made me a pretty rare minority, but they didn't buy it.

On the other hand, women are legally considered a 'minority' in spite of the fact that they constitute 52% or the population. It is a mathematical necessity that men be considered a minority. I guess logic doesn't really enter into this.

I'm expecting a child soon, maybe I'll try the 'human' thing if they ask. Or I could be a smart ass and tell them she's half Klingon and half Vulcan.

[Steve]

Jim:

You assume (incorrectly) that being a minority has to do with the mathematical makeup of the group. nay, nay, my young apprentice. It has to do with how loud you can scream about being excluded from the white man's world of success and power (heretofore referred to as the dark side), while maintaining that to be well educated and aspiring makes you "too white" or "too masculine".

If you want to see what I mean, check out what's been going on in Milwaukee with the police chief vs. the mayor and the county sheriff vs. the black political establishment. http://www.jsonline.com.

Live long and prosper.

[Yuri]

Hispanics will NEVER become merely "another ethnic group" the way the Irish, the Poles, the Ukrainians, and all the others, did. Why? Because the Federal Government mede them an officially designated "protected group," thus treating them differently then others, giving them more slack, and demanding less from them in return. Only when our colleges and universities abolish special admission quotas for Hispanic OR establish admission quotas for young people from Albania as well, and our schools get rid of bilingual education for Hispanic kids OR add bilingual education for children from Korea (who, accidentally, do better than Hispanic kids in school even without it), will Hispanics become just another ethnic group, fitting into the Great Misaic which we call the United States. This, of course will never happen. Too many bureacrats at all levels and too nay professional Hispanic whiners are making a livng ff the current state of affairs.

[Ranald H.]

Shortly after my daughter was born, a kind, well meaning gal strode into the hospital room and asked us brightly what race our child was, for government records and such. Human, I said, looking her straight in the eye. Bu'But, oh, (tightening) The form has blah blah blah... (Poor gal, she wasn't expecting this)

What's wrong with human? Is something else more important? Coup de grace. She was speechless. Since this was a catch and release pond, I let her off the hook with and answer. She didn't set policy.

I remain angry to this day that the government - our governent - perpetuates the stupidity and ultimate meaninglessness that "race" and all things racist bring to our society.

[Jimmy Antley]

A quick reply to Mr. Ripley: Nobody's forcing you on the census forms or the others. I had a 15 minute discussion with the kid from the census dept. in 2000. I tried to get it through to him that the US Constitution only specified "enumerating the people" (something like that). Nothing about my plumbing, electrical wiring or sewage system in the original document, right? I said there was one person and one cat. Then I did finally tell him my name when he looked like he was gonna cry.

On all the other forms you just need to lie, so you can mess up the database. That's the real American way. Don't take so much crap lying down, Jon.

[Harry Tuttle]

I always thought women were the largest minority group.
Besides, what's an Hispanic, anyway? I used to have a friend who's family was from Mexico. He didn't consider himself Hispanic. He said he was chicano. Admitting a little ignorance, I said I thought chicanos where part Spanish, part American Indian. Nope, he said chicanos were 100% American Indian, or, Native Mexican, if you will. I don't know if he had a term for Mexicans with Spanish descent, other than assholes. And would Egyptians be considered African-American?

[John]

>>Besides, what's an Hispanic, anyway?

[Jon Ripley]

I am angry that the U.S. Government forces citizens to state their race. On census forms, job applications, loan and credit card applications, and everywhere else. I believe we are all humans, and skin color is irrelevent. Besides, Hispanics come in all shades of the skin color spectrum, how is the government going to handle that?

[Tuning_Spork]

Ronald Reagan once said "Whether we come from privelidge or poverty; whether we are african-american or irish-american, we are all equal in the eyes of G-d. BUT...as Americans that is not enough. We must be equal in the eyes of each other." Reagan said it but I suspect Peggy Noonan wrote it! So about who's more of a minority than whom....who give's a rat's ass?!

[Madog]

We get a few problems with reporting race in the HR office where I work. Ever try to pick a race for Sudanese? In the same family they can range from dark, African complection with Arab features, to Arab complexion with African features. Since sub-saharan Africans are black, and north Africans are white, it makes it tough to decided. Plus, Arabs almost never want to be called white, non-US blacks hate being labeled African American, and while we call South Asians (Indians, Pakistanis, etc) Asian, a lot of places call them white. Still, since we get federal funding we have to keep track of these things.

[Madog]

Funny story, I knew a white guy from Kenya who always put down African-American, because he was born in Africa, even if his grandparents were English settlers...

[J. Luis Centino]

I think that they should sometime in the census or in school books talk about what a white,hispanic,black or asian is !!!! because there is 199 million white people in the U.S it could be irish, english, poles, germans, etc. or in the case of hispanics you got of european descent or blacks of african descent mainly spanish,italian and portuguese. In my case my mom's family immigrated to mexico when the civil war in spain was hit, and my dad's side immigrated too but dont know when , my question is that do european hispanics fit in the white group or black hisp. with african americans?????

[T.Kitty]

I think you're right about that I'm human not just a color. I have many friends who aren't black but they're the coolest people anyone could. Who cares what race you are besides, color is only skin deep.

[Kornblau Katherine]

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DATE: 01/21/2004 05:27:41
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