Why is race on the census form?

I agree with you, however, in order to track racism in the economy (it does exist and it institutionalized) and prevent it or equalize those in lower socio-economic groups we have to know where they live. Because I am also very mixed race I always check other and write in American.

Why make such a big deal out of it? In every day life, people of different ethnic groups claim to be so proud of their ethnicity, now, all of a sudden they don't want to put it in writing. Besides, if what you like to be referred to is not on the printed list, write what you prefer in the "other" choice. Big deal! Just fill out the census to the best of your ability and send it in. By making a big issue out of it, you only set yourself up for further investigation and unnecessary aggravation.

Because those who bring the "race card" to the table, keep racism alive. I think race is rotting away. It doesn't matter anymore, but for those who see "inequality" use race thus perpetuating the statistics needed for race.

Terrible.

Hispanics are people of Latin American ancetry Central America, South America and parts of the Caribbean. Who speak Romance languages. Anglo American English Language White American & Canadian Black American & Canadian Caribbean American Romance & English Language Afro Caribbean Native American White Latin American Romance languages (Spanish Portuguese etc) 1)Hispanic American (Spanish) Black Hispanic White Hispanic Indian Hispanic Hispanic (Mixed or other) 2)Ibero American (Portuguese) Mestizo (White & Indian) Mulatto (Black & White) Zambo (Black & Indian) Pardo (Black White & Indian) Hispanics are a group of people who are part of Latin Americans who have many races and even mixed people that in history they simply lumped them all into one group to make it easier but they are not a race or ethnicity more of a culture. We could easily call you Anglo American but your history of segregation made clear the racial difference and split cultures making it harder to lump Black and White Americans together like you can in Latin America. Black Americans and White Americans have different cultures Hispanics share a close one.

i have the census form and they finally added a middle easterner category lol i guessed they finally figured arabs are not white so why classify them as white. i also see they have black/african american non hispanic and white nothing says caucasian here lol they also gave mediterranian people their own category wtf

the government would like access to as much information about you as possible

cause neo cons like inequality, get rid of them and this world will be a better place

FIRST, I believe you are thinking of the human species. Although many people have heard the phrase "human race", human is not a race, it's a species. Check out the following definitions of race:

From MERRIAM-WEBSTER DICTIONARY ONLINE: (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/race):

Main Entry: (3)race, Function: noun, Etymology: Middle French, generation, from Old Italian razza

2 a : a family, tribe, people, or nation belonging to the same stock b : a class or kind of people unified by shared interests, habits, or characteristics

From WIKIPEDIA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_%28classificatio...

[Race] refers to the categorization of humans into populations or ancestral groups on the basis of various sets of heritable characteristics."

From the AAPA Statement on Biological Aspects of Race American Association of Physical Anthropologists:

"Pure races, in the sense of genetically homogeneous populations, do not exist in the human species today, nor is there any evidence that they have ever existed in the past."

SECOND, you're correct that perhaps "ethnicity" would be more appropriate for them to use, as the word "race" has become relatively obsolete in science, sociology, and anthropology, though that doesn't mean that the word race is incorrectly used.

THIRD, you asked, "Why does our government still support ethnic inequality." I assume you're asking why they ask your race. Here is what the Census Bureau says why they ask this question:

• Assess home mortgage lending patterns of financial institutions to meet the credit needs of minorities.

• Meet legislative redistricting requirements.

• Monitor compliance with the Voting Rights Act by local jurisdictions.

• Assess racial disparities in health and environmental risks.

FOURTH, you say "I am part canadian indian, french, Lithuanian, dutch and Irish. My children's mom is latin american."

Check out the information I found in the 2010 Census Questionnaire Reference Book, and then pick the one that applies to you for the "What is this person’s race?" question:

People may choose to report more than one race to indicate their racial mixture, such as “American Indian” and “White.”

People who identify their origin as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish may be of any race.

Mark the “White” box if this person has origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa. This includes people who indicate their race as “White” or report entries such as Irish, German, Italian, Lebanese, Near Easterner, Arab, or Polish.

Mark the “Black, African Am., or n[]egro” box if this person has origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. This includes people who indicate their race as “Black, African American, or n[]egro,” or provide written entries such as African American, Afro-American, Kenyan, Nigerian, or Haitian.

Mark the “American Indian or Alaska Native” box if this person has origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintain tribal affiliation or community attachment. This category includes people who indicate their race as "American Indian or Alaska Native," and/or provide written entries such as Navajo, Blackfeet, Inupiat, Yupik, Canadian Indian, French American Indian, or Spanish American Indian.

Mark any of the Asian boxes if this person has origins of any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam. This includes "Asian Indian," "Chinese," "Filipino," "Korean," "Japanese," "Vietnamese," and "Other Asian."

Mark the “Asian Indian” box if this person indicates their race as “Asian Indian” or identifies themselves as Bengalese, Bharat, Dravidian, East Indian, or Goanese.

Mark the “Chinese” box if this person indicates their race as “Chinese” or identifies themselves as Cantonese, or Chinese American. In some census tabulations, written entries of Taiwanese are included with Chinese while in others they are shown separately.

Mark the “Filipino” box if this person indicates their race as “Filipino” or who reports entries such as Philipino, Philipine, or Filipino American.

Mark the “Japanese” box if this person indicates their race as “Japanese” or who reports entries such as Nipponese or Japanese American.

Mark the “Korean” box if this person indicates their race as “Korean” or who provides a response of Korean American.

Mark the “Vietnamese” box if this person indicates their race as “Vietnamese” or who provides a response of Vietnamese American.

Mark the “Other Asian” box if this person provides a write-in response of an Asian group, such as Bangladeshi, Bhutanese, Burmese, Cambodian, Hmong, Laotian, Indochinese, Indonesian, Iwo Jiman, Madagascar, Malaysian, Maldivian, Nepalese, Okinawan, Pakistani, Singaporean, Sri Lankan, Thai, or Other Asian, not specified.

Mark the “Native Hawaiian” box if this person indicates their race as “Native Hawaiian” or identifies themselves as “Part Hawaiian” or “Hawaiian.”

Mark the “Guamanian or Chamorro” box if this person indicates their race as such, including written entries of Chamorro or Guam.

Mark the “Samoan” box if this person indicates their race as “Samoan” or who identifies themselves as American Samoan or Western Samoan.

Mark the “Other Pacific Islander” box if this person provides a write-in response of a Pacific Islander group, such as Carolinian, Chuukese (Trukese), Fijian, Kosraean, Melanesian, Micronesian, Northern Mariana Islander, Palauan, Papua New Guinean, Pohnpeian, Polynesian, Solomon Islander, Tahitian, Tokelauan, Tongan, Yapese, or Other Pacific Islander, not specified.

Mark the “Some other race” box if this person is not included in the "White," "Black or African American," "American Indian or Alaska Native," "Asian," and "Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander" race categories described above. Respondents providing entries such as multiracial, mixed, interracial, or a Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish group (for example, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, or Spanish) in the "Some other race" write-in space are included in this category.

People who are of two or more races may chose to provide two or more races either by checking two or more race response check boxes, by providing multiple responses, or by some combination of check boxes and other responses.

I hope that helps!