12.6.2004
Shades of Belonging
Latinos and Racial Identity
by Sonya Tafoya, Pew Hispanic Center
The findings of this study suggest that Hispanics see race as a measure of belonging, and whiteness as a measure of inclusion, or of perceived inclusion. The report reveals that Latinos' choice to identify as white, or not, does not exclusively reflect permanent markers such as skin color or hair texture but that race is also related to characteristics that can change, such as economic status and perceptions of civic enfranchisement. Whiteness is clearly associated with distance from the immigrant experience. Thus, the U.S.-born children of immigrants are more likely to declare themselves white than their foreign-born parents, and the share of whiteness is higher still among the grandchildren of immigrants. In addition, the acquisition of U.S. citizenship is associated with whiteness.
Other Resources
How Race Counts for Hispanic Americans
John Logan, Lewis Mumford Center, July 14, 2003.
This report describes how race is counted among Hispanics, and shows that different Hispanic racial groups are very distinct in terms of socioeconomic status and residential patterns.
http://mumford.albany.edu/census/BlackLatinoReport/BlackLatino01.htm