Race and ethnicity in the United States

Census
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from African American (U.S. Census))
"Other races" redirects here. For other races outside the United States, see Race (human
classification).
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, defined by the federal Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in
which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate
whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin (the only categories for ethnicity).
[1][2]

The racial categories represent a social-political construct for the race or races that respondents
consider themselves to be and "generally reflect a social definition of race recognized in this
country."
[3]
OMB defines the concept of race as outlined for the US Census as not "scientific or
anthropological" and takes into account "social and cultural characteristics as well as ancestry",
using "appropriate scientific methodologies" that are not "primarily biological or genetic in
reference."
[4]
The race categories include both racial and national-origin groups.
[5]

Race and ethnicity are considered separate and distinct identities, with Hispanic or Latino origin
asked as a separate question. Thus, in addition to their race or races, all respondents are
categorized by membership in one of two ethnic categories, which are "Hispanic or Latino" and
"Not Hispanic or Latino". However, the practice of separating "race" and "ethnicity" as different
categories has been criticized both by the American Anthropological Association and members
of U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
[6][7]

In 1997, OMB issued a Federal Register notice regarding revisions to the standards for the
classification of federal data on race and ethnicity.
[8]
OMB developed race and ethnic standards
in order to provide "consistent data on race and ethnicity throughout the Federal Government.
The development of the data standards stem in large measure from new responsibilities to
enforce civil rights laws." Among the changes, OMB issued the instruction to "mark one or more
races" after noting evidence of increasing numbers of interracial children and wanting to capture
the diversity in a measurable way and having received requests by people who wanted to be able
to acknowledge their or their children's full ancestry rather than identifying with only one group.
Prior to this decision, the Census and other government data collections asked people to report
only one race.
[3]

Contents
1 How data on race and ethnicity are used
2 Brief overview of race and ethnicity in the U.S. Census' history
o 2.1 18th & 19th centuries
o 2.2 20th century
o 2.3 21st century
3 Relation between ethnicity and race in census results
4 Other agencies
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading
How data on race and ethnicity are used
The OMB states, "many federal programs are put into effect based on the race data obtained
from the decennial census (i.e., promoting equal employment opportunities; assessing racial
disparities in health and environmental risks). Race data are also critical for the basic research
behind many policy decisions. States require these data to meet legislative redistricting
requirements. The data are needed to monitor compliance with the Voting Rights Act by local
jurisdictions".
"Data on ethnic groups are important for putting into effect a number of federal statutes (i.e.,
enforcing bilingual election rules under the Voting Rights Act; monitoring and enforcing equal
employment opportunities under the Civil Rights Act). Data on Ethnic Groups are also needed
by local governments to run programs and meet legislative requirements (i.e., identifying
segments of the population who may not be receiving medical services under the Public Health
Act; evaluating whether financial institutions are meeting the credit needs of minority
populations under the Community Reinvestment Act).
[5]