Is there a better way to identify Hispanics in official polls? Some say yes.

Erica Prosper, a Mexican-American, recalls not knowing how to fill out census forms for her family.

“I never felt like I belonged to what was considered white,” said Prosper, 48. “When I was young, I had to fill out paperwork for my family. I remember deliberately writing “others” because we were treated like others.”

When the last census was taken in 2020, she tested multiracial to reflect a combination of what she says is her Latin (a word some Hispanics use to include) and Indigenous roots. “I don’t think I’m alone,” she said. Prosper’s husband, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg, is of Eastern European Ashkenazi Jewish descent and has Filipino, Malay, Indian and British ancestry.

Both may have many more specific options to choose from by the time the next census takes place in 2030.

The Biden administration is working to update how it defines the race and ethnicity of Americans for official use. It is gathering public feedback on its January 27 proposal to change choices for people who self-identify as Hispanic or Latino, or versions thereof. Comments can be submitted through the federal website until April 12.

The federal government has been puzzling for decades over how to capture the complexity of an ever-growing population of people with Hispanic or Latino roots. The implications of the proposed changes are wide-ranging, from how people are asked about their identity at the census, to how a local police officer identifies a person accused of a traffic violation.

The disproportionate impact of the pandemic on communities of color and the lack of data from some states and regions showing rates of illness, hospitalizations, vaccinations, and deaths have demonstrated the need for accurate collection of such information.

“The states are adopting what the federal does. Your schools, your law enforcement, they all … take their cue from what the government does,” said Julie Dowling, author of Mexican Americans and the Race Question.

FILE - People walk through Times Square in New York City in this Aug. 22, 2019 file photo.  The population of non-Hispanic whites in the U.S. has declined over the past decade as deaths outnumber births in this aging demographic and the majority of the population under the age of 16 is non-white for the first time, although there are fewer than a decade ago, according to new data released Thursday. June 25, 2020, US Census Bureau.  (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, file)
The federal government has long puzzled over how to embrace the ever-increasing complexity of the American population. Bebeto Matthews / AP file

The Biden administration’s OMB suggests asking people, “What is your race or ethnicity?” and follow it up with “Select all that apply”.

In an abbreviated question next to “White”, “Hispanic or Latino”, “Black or African American”, “Asian”, “American Indian or Alaska Native”, “Middle Eastern or North African,” and “Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander” “.

An alternative sentence is a longer question that contains detailed information on each answer option. For example, after Hispanic or Latino, the respondent could check the box for Mexican or Mexican American, the box for Puerto Rican, and so on. There is also a write field.

Under current government standards, in the 2020 Census, people were asked to first choose whether they were Hispanic or non-Hispanic, and for “yes” answers, which origin: Mexican, Puerto Rican, etc. They were then asked to choose their race. , but there is no Hispanic or Latino among these options. About 26 million Hispanics, 42%, marked “some other race” in the census.

“The problem we have now is that people get confused and end up not even answering the question about race. People think that I have already indicated that I am Mexican, so why should I check for another or some other race? said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Hispanic Elected and Appointed Officials, or NALEO.

“People are also confused that they consider their Hispanic identity as their identity,” Vargas said.

This confusion over identifiers is reflected in the evolution of census forms, which until 1980 did not include a short form question about Hispanic identity. “Mexican” was included in the 1930 census but then removed before the next census amid protests from Mexican-American activists and Mexico, said Julie Dowling, author of Mexican Americans and the Race Question.

In recent years, “people have looked at data as a source of power. With the data, you could argue and defend the interests of your community,” Dowling said.

Jatan Melendez, 24, is the lead youth organizer of the Community Coalition, a South Los Angeles group that campaigns against systemic racism and improves relations between blacks and Hispanics. Melendez, who grew up as a biracial black man with family heritage from Honduras, Guatemala and Belize, said he feels “boxed in” with the current limited racial options.

“It was always difficult to choose — there were times when I identified as black, and there were also times when I identified as Central American,” he said. “I had to put ‘other’ and just state that I’m from Central America to be comfortable at that moment.”

Asked how he would react to the options offered, Melendez said he would “still choose blacks because I’m afraid that my identity as a Central American on paper will limit the opportunities, resources or voice of the black community because I chose not to do this.” identify as black.”

Two young children hold signs through the car window with a link to the 2020 U.S. Census at an information event in Dallas on February 25, 2020.
Two young children hold signs in a car window with a link to the 2020 U.S. Census at an information event in Dallas, June 25, 2020.Tony Gutierrez / AP file

Identifiers are critical to civil rights enforcement, Vargas said, noting the first use of new census data for redistricting. “We need to know where Hispanics live, where African Americans live, essentially, so we can draw areas that comply with the Voting Rights Act.”

“If we have 40% of Hispanics who say they are of some other race, that doesn’t help you … find out what race those Hispanics are because they identify in a non-existent category,” he said. .

Mark Hugo Lopez, Director of Race and Ethnicity Research at the Pew Research Center, explained that for some, being Hispanic or Latino is a race, for others, it is a distinct identity derived from the country they come from, their ethnicity, and their family background. origin and are not tied to race.

“Race and ethnicity are perceived differently and viewed differently than they are here in the United States,” Lopez said. “One of the concerns with this particular change is not only the definition of racial and ethnic distribution among Hispanics, but whether we have something to lose in the Hispanic count.”

There was controversy among Hispanics over whether the one-question format was the best way out. Vargas said NALEO had to be persuaded, and the study found that the merged question produced more complete data on Hispanics.

But Nancy Lopez, a professor of sociology at the University of New Mexico, says the proposal is problematic. She suggests a box for the “Brown” category.

“If we collect Hispanic data the same way we collect data about race, then we are erasing black Hispanics because we are talking about there being a Hispanic race and you guys are mixed race or something. It’s funny,” said Lopez, the daughter of a Dominican. immigrants.

The proposed single question, she said, would prevent seeing different levels of segregation among Hispanics and would dilute data on Hispanic diversity. Lopez pointed to the example of actress Anna Taylor-Joy, an Argentine-Scottish woman, correcting the article’s reference to her as a woman of color when she identifies as white Hispanic.

“When you have five flags, who knows what they’re going to do?” Lopez asked.

Benjamin Casar, 30, grew up in Houston and speaks Spanish. His family immigrated from Mexico in the mid to late 1980s and have heritage from parts of North Africa, Spain and Hawaii.

Like Melendez, Casar struggled to pick a race on the paperwork. He remembered asking his mother, “Who are we?” and “Which one should I choose?” When he was younger.

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