The census is coming!!! What identity will you check off and why???

[Al "Kutubanama" Velazquez]

Lots of opinions of identity have surfaced in different posts about identity, and why you identify yourself as such, often with heated debates and controversy. This is posted to bring up, not a case for controversy, nor adversity, but for healthy discussion. Let's listen and respect ALL opinions and posts. I'd love to hear from ALL!!!

[Tomas Baibramael Gonzalez]

What a surprise for Whitelandia when the 2000 Census announced the triumphant reappearance of the proud and noble people known as the Taino, who made its grand reentry into the census count. They still don’t know what to do with the information and the next census I predict will show an even larger increase in our numbers as the Boricua, Puerto Rican or what ever our people chose to call them selves in the past continues to regain their collective consciousness and add the missing link “TAINO” to the list. The work of the resurgence movement continues to grow and make its contribution to the Boricua experience both in our motherland of Boriken and in the Diaspora of the US. I can only hope that our brothers and sisters of Kiskeya, Cuba and the rest of the Caribbean will also make the transformation and redefine themselves as Taino, as we have begun to do. We have too again spread the word to all of our people to make the effort to write in Taino during the next census count in 2010.

Despierta Boricua defiende lo tuyo,

Waribonex

[Al "Kutubanama" Velazquez]

At one time they used to place ethnicity and race in one list together. I never agreed with that, and I guess many people protested that too, because it's been showing separately in many apps. It has been said before, but I'll say it again. I won;t check off Latino, because it's a linguistic background from which the 4 Romantic Tongues came from; Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Italian. I won't check off Hispanic, because that describes a Cultural background, which is influenced by Native, African and European cultures. Though I am part European White, which I will NEVER deny, I am first and foremost Native and that's the category I will be checking off!!!

[Anita Pagan]

The nerve!

[Al "Kutubanama" Velazquez]

One thing that now appears even as you apply for New York State unemployment, in the section about ethnicity (which they say is optional) is that if you choose to answer, they have what's called "Ethnicy" and below it, "Race". Under "Ethnicity", it says "Hispanic, Non-Hispanic, or "I choose not to answer". If you put "I choose not to answer" in the "Ethnicity" category, but put "American Indian-Alaska Native", the system lets you know that the form is incomplete, and it tells you to fill in the blank for "Ethnicity". Interesting, no?

[Anita Pagan]

I posted this in Sha's forum discussion (Defying the Census) and thought it would be appropriate here as well...

In the 2000 US Census there was the option of identifying as Hispanic/Latino as defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in October 1997. The OMB defines Hispanic or Latino as “a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin regardless of race.”

Once checked as Hispanic one then checks a race (Black, white, American Indian, Asian, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, other)

The census is based on personal identification and not federal documentation. (“American Indian and Alaska Native” refers to people having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintain tribal affiliation or community attachment.) If they are including South and Central America, which are not Federally recognized Nations, then why would it not work for Tainos, Caribs, Garifunas and all of us?

I believe folks were misguided into not checking themselves as Native American...

BTW, you can check more than one race, too, if that is the way you self-identify.

Here is the 2000 Overview on Race and Hispanic Origin as per the Census Bureau. You can be Hispanic of any race...

Apparently things are to remain the same in this portion according to the questions submitted to congress for the 2010 Census.

[Juan Almonte]

Ruben,

You have to understand. That people tend to belive and then assume if they have a spanish last name thy have spaniord blood. They will even assume that a grandparent is spanird. This is what happend to my friend. He assumed his grandfather was spaniord. Untill I had him check. Now he has incountered that same thing as me. I will call him and see if he has any updates. But last time I checked. His grandfather and his grandfather grandfathers. Have no european ancestry. From both sides. He was stuned. See my point. Now if you know for a fact thats a diffrent story. But if they are baseing it on lastname alone. No it should not be included.


You mentioned your girlfriend. Does she now for a fact. I mean can she actually say such person came from europe. Not hear say but some one who actualy came with no dought. I will bet that she cant. I bet that many of us cant.


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Sha I have, LOL............... They like hold up only african were slaves. I give them a history lesson. Some people are so ingnorant.

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Barakutei,

I compleatly agree with you. I am not even going to add cause you nailed it brother.

By the way da waitio borikua, daka taino kiskeya da waitiao.

[Barakutei Yanaouko ah Baguanamey]

Daka Taino Borikua. I don't know how to be anything else. I don't tolerate being called hispanic, latin or any other such lie. I am not his-spic, her-spic or anybodies spic. I am not latin and I don't even speak latin. And the worst of it is, where is hispania ? None of my ancestors come from hispania. So, there you have it I'm nor hispanic. The reason for the whites to write on our birth records that we are white, is to claim a greater white majority population. That being a Great lie as any body can see. They look at your birth record and look at you and surprise, you don't get treated with respect, so don't expect it. I've learned that many years ago.

[Juan Almonte]

LOL, one more thing.


With that said I am not stating that there are no full blooded european living in central, south ameririca I am including the caribbean.

[Juan Almonte]

Sorry one more thing. This is one of the reason I am hard on people when they are basing there roots on last name. I have already mentioned the censoring. But if you asked any person who has a spanish last name they will tell you well . I have a spanish last name. I must have spanoird blood. This is not alway true. I have a friend from jainico that who thought the same thing. He tought his grandparents were from spain. Well the problem was that he assumed. Cause I mad him ask. Guess what now he too is having a hard time tracing his ancestry back to spain and europe. So last name is the worst thing. I mean no one is going to say that martin luther kings is britanic. But hold up he has a english name!!!!!!! See my point.

[Juan Almonte]

One more thing my father cousin found some documentation on my family being slave owned by the spanirods. I asked my dad african slaves? He said no. on the documents it says indio. I told this too jorge estevez cause I thought how can this be. My parents are going to DR in a few month so I told them to copy this stuff for me. Anwyas I told Jorge cause I found it hard to belive. Cause I didnt think the spanirods kept good records. I was stunned cause Jorge was not surprised at all. Jorge says that this is a regular thing that many people are now discovering. I was like wow. I thought this guy was going to laugh but he acted like it was nothing out of the ordinary.