Where Did “Hispanics” Come From?

Posted in Articles, Census/Demographics, Latino Studies, Media Archive, Social Science, United States on 2014-04-01 01:58Z by Steven

Where Did “Hispanics” Come From?

Sociological Images: Inspiring Sociological Imaginations Everywhere
2014-03-29

Claude S. Fischer, Professor of Sociology
University of California, Berkeley

One may well wonder where the term “Hispanic,” and for that matter, “Latino,” came from. The press and pundits are all abuzz about the Hispanic vote, Hispanic organizations, and Hispanic cultural influences. Back in the mid-twentieth century, however, they wrote about Mexicans or Puerto Ricans or Guatemalans, not about Hispanics. Of course, people of Latin American origin have become far more numerous in the United States since then and the immigration itself brings more attention. Nonetheless, the labels have changed. Starting in the 1970s, the media rapidly adopted the “pan-ethnic” term Hispanic, and to a lesser degree, Latino, and slowed down their use of specific national labels.* So did, organizations, agencies, businesses, and “Hispanics” themselves.

As recounted in her important new book, Making Hispanics, sociologist (and my colleague) G. Cristina Mora tells the story of how people as diverse as Cuban-born businessmen in Miami, undocumented Mexican farm workers in California, and third-generation part-Puerto Ricans in New York who do not even understand Spanish were brought together into one social category: Hispanic-Americans…

Read the entire article here.

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Race and Censuses From Around the World

Posted in Articles, Census/Demographics, Media Archive, Politics/Public Policy, Social Science on 2010-04-09 02:50Z by Steven

Race and Censuses From Around the World

Sociological Images: Inspiring Sociological Imaginations Everywhere
2009-03-29

Lisa Wade, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Occidental College

Different countries formalize different racial categories.  Below are examples of the ”race” questions on the Censuses of 9 different countries.   They illustrate just how diverse ideas about race are and challenge the notion that there is one “correct” question or set of questions…

Read the entire article here.

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What Does “Black” And “White” Look Like Anyway?

Posted in Articles, Barack Obama, Media Archive, Social Science, United States on 2010-04-09 00:51Z by Steven

What Does “Black” And “White” Look Like Anyway?

Sociological Images: Inspiring Sociological Imaginations Everywhere
2008-10-24

Lisa Wade, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Occidental College

Gwen Sharp, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Nevada State College

These two photos—one of Barack Obama as an adult and one of a young Obama and his Grandfather, Stanley Dunham—are a great opportunity to think a little bit about the social construction of race.  Comments from both me and Gwen after the pics.

Lisa:  Obama, to my eye, is the spitting image of his grandfather. Yet, we see Obama and Dunham as separate races, members of two categories we see as diametrically opposed, even biologically distinct.

Gwen: I tried a little experiment in class. I put up a photo of adult Obama and I had my students make a list of what characteristics made him identifiably Black, in their view. Every one of them put on their list his nose, lips, and hair, and several made comments about his ears or just that “the combination of all his facial features” was “clearly” Black…


Photo from Mangas Verdes

Read the entire article here.

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The Census and the Social Construction of Race

Posted in Articles, Census/Demographics, New Media, Politics/Public Policy, Social Science, United States on 2010-04-09 00:37Z by Steven

The Census and the Social Construction of Race

Sociological Images: Inspiring Sociological Imaginations Everywhere
2010-03-29

Lisa Wade, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Occidental College

Social and biological scientists agree that race and ethicity are social constructions, not biological categories.  The U.S. government, nonetheless, has an official position on what categories are “real.”  You can find them on the U.S. Census…

…Alvaro V. asked us to talk a little bit about the Census.  So, here are some highlights from the hour-long lecture I give in my Race and Ethnicity course…

Read the entire article here.

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