An American Puzzle: Fitting Race in a BoxPosted in Articles, Census/Demographics, Media Archive, Social Science, United States on 2023-10-18 01:37Z by Steven |
An American Puzzle: Fitting Race in a Box
The New York Times
2023-10-16
K.K. Rebecca Lai and Jennifer Medina
Census categories for race and ethnicity have shaped how the nation sees itself. Here’s how they have changed over the last 230 years.
Since 1790, the decennial census has played a crucial role in creating and reshaping the ever-changing views of racial and ethnic identity in the United States.
Over the centuries, the census has evolved from one that specified broad categories — primarily “free white” people and “slaves” — to one that attempts to encapsulate the country’s increasingly complex demographics. The latest adaptation proposed by the Biden administration in January seeks to allow even more race and ethnicity options for people to describe themselves than the 2020 census did.
If approved, the proposed overhaul would most likely be adopted across all surveys in the country about health, education and the economy. Here’s what the next census could look like…
Read the entire article here.