The recent changes made by the 2020 Census, which would move Latinos into the race category, brings forward the discussion whether Latinos should be considered a race or an ethnicity. Even though society projects a single stereotype of what it means to be a Latinos, the Latino community is actually extremely diverse with no physical characteristics bounding them together instead the shared experience of being a Latino is the United States ties this heterogeneous group together. This understanding of each other on a cultural level and not on a physical appearance level is what makes Latinos an ethnicity and not a race.
While the Latino community contains a variety of people with different cultures, customs, races, and nationalities, they are …show more content…
Despite their resemblances in certain situations, Latinos do not have a particular “look” that is perpetuated in society, because the term Latinos includes a diverse population from Afro-Latinos to Indigenous Latinos to white Latinos, which is why Latinos should be considered an ethnicity more than a race in the United States. For example, a Puerto Rican and a Chilean would not have a similar culture, however, when placed in the United States, they are bounded by shared experiences and have more in common with themselves than they would with a white American. These common ground allows Latinos to create a sense of community with each other, thus, forming an ethnic group and not a race, because they have more of a mental bond than one based on physical …show more content…
This change in the Census would mean that there are certain physical attributes associated with being Latino, and this is not true, since Latinos range from having white skin, brown skin and black skin. However, there are people who would identify more with being Latino rather than being white or black. I feel like these people should either be able to not fill the race box or fill out whatever they feel applies to them. I feel that since Latinos are viewed as a race that it would not allow society to view the diversity within the Latino community, and the Census changes will cement this homogenous perception of the appearances of
While the Latino community contains a variety of people with different cultures, customs, races, and nationalities, they are …show more content…
Despite their resemblances in certain situations, Latinos do not have a particular “look” that is perpetuated in society, because the term Latinos includes a diverse population from Afro-Latinos to Indigenous Latinos to white Latinos, which is why Latinos should be considered an ethnicity more than a race in the United States. For example, a Puerto Rican and a Chilean would not have a similar culture, however, when placed in the United States, they are bounded by shared experiences and have more in common with themselves than they would with a white American. These common ground allows Latinos to create a sense of community with each other, thus, forming an ethnic group and not a race, because they have more of a mental bond than one based on physical …show more content…
This change in the Census would mean that there are certain physical attributes associated with being Latino, and this is not true, since Latinos range from having white skin, brown skin and black skin. However, there are people who would identify more with being Latino rather than being white or black. I feel like these people should either be able to not fill the race box or fill out whatever they feel applies to them. I feel that since Latinos are viewed as a race that it would not allow society to view the diversity within the Latino community, and the Census changes will cement this homogenous perception of the appearances of