Question about SO's race

[Jenn! 918]

Yes, white/caucasian is correct.

From Wikipedia:

"In cases where individuals do not self-identify, the United States Census parameters for race gives each national origin a racial value. This groups Middle Eastern Americans and North African American together with European Americans as White Americans."

Sorry I'm not ME/NA but wanted to ask, Jenn, where did you find this?

Rey is ghostly pale (not as pale as me, but almost) but from Brazil. So does that make him white? Latino? He's half Portuguese/half Brazilian so who knows what racial mixture he has on the Brazilian side. What is the racial value for Brazil?

eta: nm you got it from wikipedia... boy i'm slow today...

Yeah, it's actually from a Wikipedia article called "White People" :huh"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_(people)

It seems there are black and white Brazilians...

I find this interesting too. My American SO is a 50:50 mix of Irish American and Japanese American but when asked to put his race on a form he puts white.

I'm mostly white with just a dash of Kashmiri but tend to put mixed race if that option is available.

He has trouble understanding my choice on forms and I have trouble understanding his.

Being from the UK as well I tend to say I'm mixed Asian/White but in America that implies a whole different mix.

Thinking back to the off topic thread on skin tone affecting earnings, maybe they should just put a colour chart on the forms and see what matches.

I have the same problem. I am also mixed race asian and white. Someone will always have a problem with which one you choose. If I put Asian,people will say that I'm not *really* Asian. And if I put white people think I'm "fronting". LOL.

I just don't answer whenever I can avoid it.

[Alex+R 0]

LOL@"fronting"

Rey was surprised to find out that Americans put their race on documents and IDs. I guess they don't do that much in Brazil.

[Henia 11]

He considers himself black and he says he is african, but not african american.

Sorry, this just made me laugh.

Wadi also says he's "African", but not black.

Ye mine too...He is African but not black (in his mind) Also in Algerie they go as far as to use the darja words like blackman in the south, or barberman (kabilye) ...(this made me envision barberians when my dH first said this ) and there is also words like brown and mocha and cappucino to descibes ppls. I have still figured out why....buuuuut another not just the word they call foreigners occidentals (lol cos they say it and sounds like accidentals):lol:

Edited February 1, 2007 by Henia

[Private 1]

He considers himself black and he says he is african, but not african american.

Sorry, this just made me laugh.

Wadi also says he's "African", but not black.

Ye mine too...He is African but not black (in his mind) Also in Algerie they go as far as to use the darja words like blackman in the south, or barberman (kabilye) ...(this made me envision barberians when my dH first said this ) and there is also words like brown and mocha and cappucino to descibes ppls. I have still figured out why....buuuuut another not just the word they call foreigners occidentals (lol cos they say it and sounds like accidentals):lol:

I wish we lived in a place where this does not matter. I have a cousin and she is from Morocco and she has the dark skin but not like a black person. She checks other, however her brother looks white and he checks white. he skin is not white so whay should she put???

[Heartland 0]

I have white skin and am obviously Caucasian. However when it comes to racial identity I put other... they most always leave a blank for you to fill in.

So for race I put HUMAN

I think if people care more for each other as people and less about pigeon holing everyone into narrow minded PC identifiers, the world would get along better. We are all the same inside.

Wendy

[noura 0]

I have white skin and am obviously Caucasian. However when it comes to racial identity I put other... they most always leave a blank for you to fill in.

So for race I put HUMAN

I think if people care more for each other as people and less about pigeon holing everyone into narrow minded PC identifiers, the world would get along better. We are all the same inside.

Wendy

[Together4ever 1]

I have white skin and am obviously Caucasian. However when it comes to racial identity I put other... they most always leave a blank for you to fill in.

So for race I put HUMAN

I think if people care more for each other as people and less about pigeon holing everyone into narrow minded PC identifiers, the world would get along better. We are all the same inside.

Wendy

Amen, Ameen, and Abso-effing-lutely.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

I do some contracting with the government, and I never check a race in their little boxes. Inevitably, a poor clerk will call and beg me to supply an answer and I will tell them no. I came from a time and place when races and ethnicities were segregated, the want ads and roles were divided by race and gender, and the only racial classifications were "Negro", "White" and "Other". I was an "Other". If you weren't Caucasoid, you had some explaining to do if you thought you were anybody.

The visual perception of my racial classiffication has evolved over the decades, and now I seem to be considered white wherever I go. It's too late, for me, tho. No matter what I look like to others, I can't ever be white in my own mind. I've been non-white in my mind for too long.

US immigration classifies people according to treaties and agreements that the State Department has with their country of origin. So, someone can be as dark as night, and they will be classified as white because most countries see white as the preferable classification, and that is what they want their population to be perceived to be, even if they are not.

[Aymerlu 3]

Funny little story. When Khallid and I went to get our marriage license the lady asked Khallid what nationality he is, and he said Egyptian. She thumbed through a little book and said "oh, then you are white!" Well those of you that have seen my husband know that he is nubian and VERY dark. I kinda gave the lady and blank look and said "look honey....now you're white!" Finally after a little discussion she found "nubian" to put in that blank. Now while Khallid is filling in applications, he just leaves it blank or marks 'black.'

[Dwarf_Ogress 0]

I so dislike the word "race" as we are ALL of the same race human. My mom used to make an extra place and write human! lol This thread is interesting though because Marlon is from Jamaica and considers himself to be Caribbean (sp?) Has anyone seen an option for him?

[amal 4]

Funny little story. When Khallid and I went to get our marriage license the lady asked Khallid what nationality he is, and he said Egyptian. She thumbed through a little book and said "oh, then you are white!" Well those of you that have seen my husband know that he is nubian and VERY dark. I kinda gave the lady and blank look and said "look honey....now you're white!" Finally after a little discussion she found "nubian" to put in that blank. Now while Khallid is filling in applications, he just leaves it blank or marks 'black.'

hillarious! I know they give Noor strange looks when he checks the box for white so I can only imagine how they would look at Khallid if he did that.

[deeshla 0]

DH enjoys writing "Amazigh" in the blank next to "other." Let them figure it out! My ob/gyn forms asked for the race/ethnicity of our baby and I had no idea what to write. There is no choice for 1/2 Irish, 1/2 Amazigh on the form! I thnk we made up something.

[AngelK96 0]

My husband and his egyptian friend were filling out forms at Walmart and they didn't have middle east as an option. So, one put Asia and the other put Africa as for race they just told them to check white.

[Ban Hammer 13,575]

for race i always put "1st place cause i drive fast"