Sunday, June 3, 2018

Race in America Part 3

While those specializing in genetics are linking DNA to disease, our political system is employing racial categories from a social- political point of view. In fact, respondents on census questionnaires are asked to choose from an arbitrary classification which race or races that they are. I imagine its difficult when one parent is light-skinned and the other parent a person of color. What if they been adopted and had never met or known about their birth parents? What’s being measured? Taking a look at questions pertaining to race from the 2010 U.S. Census: 5. is this person of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin? Mexican, Mexican-American, Chicano, Puerto Rican, Cuban, 6. White, Black, African American or Negro, American Indian or Alaska Native, 6. Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, other Asian, Japanese, Korean, Native Hawaiian, Guamanian or Chamorro, Samoan, Other Pacific Islander, Some Other Race. From these questions, the US has gathered questionable statistics on ethnicity and color of skin .Country, location, ethnicity and nationality are addressed. Maybe, just maybe, eliminating the social construct race from a governmental, political, and prejudicial point of view and referring to humankind as Homo sapiens might be more accurate and truthful. Asking where you were born, where your parents were born and where your grandparents were born would be more accurate and more useful .We are a society of immigrants and Native Indians. PS Yes, even the native Indians migrated.

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