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2020 US Census Could have Hispanic as a New Race
Posted: Jan 9, 2013 4:41 PM by Jessica Holley - jholley@kristv.com
Updated: Jan 9, 2013 6:58 PM
CORPUS CHRISTI - The US Census is used to count and categorizes American citizens, but that is a hard thing to do since our county is such a melting pot of cultures. It's a living document, constantly evolving as Americans do. But now the US Census Bureau is looking to define Hispanics as a race rather than an ethnicity in 2020. But this potential change has some who identify as Hispanic ethnically, concerned.
"Is it skewing numbers? Yes because then some of the people with ethnic backgrounds might consider themselves White, Black and some Hispanic," saysDr. Nick Adame, President of LULAC Council 1.
And it's not just the numbers, many Hispanics feel as though they will lose their national identity. Hispanics are one of the largest and fastest growing populations in the country. And already the country groups these people together in the same way Whites, Blacks, or Asians are. But the question remains, "Is this the best way to define this part of the American population?"
"When you use race as a way to distinguishing between Hispanics and other groups, it's difficult,"say Texas A&M University Corpus Christi Sociology Professor, Dr. Bilaye Benibo.
This topic has been a subject of one of Dr. Benibo's classes this school.
"Neither of these two constructs, race or ethnicity, adequately helps us to distinguish among Americans," says Dr. Benibo.
Despite the opposition, the Census Bureau is trying to make sure this group of Americans is appropriately defined.
If the changes are approved, it will be the biggest adjustment to the census since the 2000 Census where Americans were able to check multiple race boxes.
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