LL-L "Ethnicity" 2005.06.17 (02) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 17.JUN.2005 (02) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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From: Travis Bemann <tabemann at gmail.com>
Subject: LL-L "Terminology" 2005.06.16 (06) [E]

> From: Kevin Caldwell <kcaldwell31 at comcast.net>
> Subject: LL-L "Terminology" 2005.06.16 (04) [E/Spanish]
>
> > From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
> >
> > Subject: Language use
> > If you think that there is a difference between _hispano_ and "Hispanic"
> > and
> > that you're one but not the other, that's entirely your prerogative.  In
> > actual fact, as far as I know, in the US you're legally entitled to
> > regard
> > your "ethnicity" as being anything you wish, even "Martian," "Elvish" or
> > "Hobbit" if you like, because self-identification overrides all.  But
> > how
> > other people perceive and classify you and if you will get the job ...
> > well,
> > those are different stories again.
>
> I'm often tempted to put down "mongrel" or "human" on such forms.  I
> suppose
> I could put down English/Scottish/Irish/Swedish/Cherokee, possibly with a
> little Dutch and Creek thrown in.  And according to family legend, we're
> descended from a Frenchman who moved to Scotland in the 15th century and
> took the name Caldwell.

Around here in southeastern Wisconsin, many people have had a short
enough period of time-distance (as low as just two generations in
between, in many cases, for someone about my age (late teens, early
20s)) between them and the "old country", so to speak, so hence many
people here still easily self-identify as one group or "half" one
thing, "half" another.  It's been a short enough period of time that a
good number of individuals still have (or had) grandparents who were
bilingual in something other than English, or in some cases, such as
that of my maternal grandmother, their first language was not English
per se, if even she did end up learning English at a young age.

However, an interesting little note is that a lot of people here
self-identify as fully or part "German", even though if the same given
ancestor got off the boat today, they wouldn't necessarily be
considered "German" today; quite easily they would be, by today's
standards, considered Czech, Polish, Latvian, Hungarian, or so on.
"German" hence does not line up with someone being from any given
nation-state (especially considering that said modern nation-states
did not exist at the time in many cases), but rather with what
language said individual spoke when they came off of the boat, whether
they were from Elsaß, Latvia, or wherever.

----------

From: Críostóir Ó Ciardha <paada_please at yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: LL-L "Terminology" 2005.06.16 (06) [E]


Ron wrote:
"I usually either do not indicate my "ethnicity" (< "race") or indicate
"other," occasionally write "none" or "Eurasian" (to confuse people who
might think I have one parent from Europe and another from Eastern Asia),
once "Pomeranian" ... I know that similar stunts are pulled by many people
who find all this ridiculous. (You know, those questions, if you are male or
female and if you're over 40 years of age are -- which are, strictly
speaking, illegal --are asked "only for statistical purposes" ... Yeah, I'm
sure!)..."

Ridiculous it may be for some, but the Cornish and Irish both struggled for
years to be acknowledged in UK census returns. In 2001 a write-in category
was permitted for Cornish for the first time. I know lots of people abuse
census forms ("Jedi" springs to mind), but to many smaller nations (i.e.,
Cornish, Kashubians) they are an important recognition of identity.

I agree that "race" is nonsense, though. I never tick "white". I always tick
"other" and write in "Cornish".

Go raibh maith agat,

Criostóir.

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Ethnicity

Críostóir (above):

> I agree that "race" is nonsense, though. I never tick "white". I always
> tick
> "other" and write in "Cornish".

I meant it in the context of what I wrote before: "ethnicity" serving as a
replacement term from "race," as is the case more often than not.  The main
thing they are interested in is if you're "Caucasian" or fall in the
standard minority categories "African American," "Hispanic," "Asian/Pacific
Islander" or "Native American."  Everything else is incidental, also that
many people are two or more of those, in which case "Caucasian" is not
expected to be one of them, because if you're one of the other you're a
"person of color" and thus can't be "white."  You get the drift, don't you?
When I was a novice I took "ethnicity" literally, and the people that read
my forms probably said, "What the ...?!"

By the way, "Pomeranian" is factual, on my maternal grandfather's side,
though not all that dainty and fluffy.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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