School form: "Ethnicity? Please check one."

[dis ms.]

I just registered DD for kindergarten. On one of the forms I completed (which may have been optional--I can't remember), it asked for the child's ethnicity. DH is white, I'm black, so two choices applied to our DD. The form asked that only one choice be checked. There was an "other", so I checked it.

This really made me think about how I would classify my kids if always only given one choice. Do most people still adhere to the Jim Crow-era "one-drop" rule, which basically stated that a person with as little as one drop of black blood in their heritage was to be considered black?

I have a hard time calling my kids black, when they are just as much white. I recently read the following quote:

"The United States is the only country in the world in which a white mother can have a black child but a black mother cannot have a white child."

Thoughts?

 

[MyManGoofy!]

I actually liked the way they used to ask the question by asking what race.

I always marked "Other" and then wrote in "Human" next to it.

 

[Miss_Nellie]

I actually liked the way they used to ask the question by asking what race.

I always marked "Other" and then wrote in "Human" next to it.

I'll have to remember that! I'm mostly white and DH is mostly cherokee ...

 

[MI mom of 3]

That is a fascinating, yet sad, quote.

I like the idea of writing Human!

 

[Robinrs]

On our websites they list the percentages of ethnicities... I guess that MATTERS to some people.

In my son's elementary school the principal announced in the PTA that there were 74 different dialects represented in a school of 500! Wow!

 

[LadyyRedd]

I think some schools or school systems might get certain funding based on their racial population. At least, that's what a friend of mine who teaches once told me.

Kimya

 

[JoyG]

I hate checking those boxes too. I consider myself black...but I'm constantly being mistaken for a white woman due to being of mixed heritage.

Most of the time I just leave that question blank, but I've found that people go behind me and fill in the answer anyway. And the answer they pick is all over the place. My college records said I was white, my medical forms said I was black, some places I'm listed as hispanic.

After I had children, I became more consistent about filling in the forms for myself and them...we're just all black. I want to identify with whatever my kids are and although they are technically mixed as well, they don't ever get mistaken for being anything other than black.

I don't know what I would have done if I'd married a white man and my children were lighter than me. I might have just gone with white. I don't think there are any rules you have to follow. Just pick one that you most closely identify with or don't pick one at all. I think you can make your own rules.

 

[jbmom]

I think some schools or school systems might get certain funding based on their racial population. At least, that's what a friend of mine who teaches once told me.

Kimya

This is what I was told also. I checked other and wrote in white/native american. I went and looked at the enrollment for the school and it used to say no native americans now it says 1.

 

[Honu]

When I checked into the hospital recently I was asked by the admitting clerk, so I said Caucasian, figuring that would be the proper term on the form. She then looked me puzzled and said, "What does that mean?"

 

[JikoMarie]

I am 100% white. However, when I get asked that question on forms I refuse to answer unless I see a logic reason why they are asking. I think we if we all stopped answering, they might stop asking.

 

[Freyja]

I actually liked the way they used to ask the question by asking what race.

I always marked "Other" and then wrote in "Human" next to it.

I love that. Love the quote in the OP as well.

 

[Caropooh]

Is the area you live in primarily black or white? I'd bet the school would like you to put whatever the minority is. I believe alot of funding is based off of that.

 

[dis ms.]

I hate checking those boxes too. I consider myself black...but I'm constantly being mistaken for a white woman due to being of mixed heritage.

Most of the time I just leave that question blank, but I've found that people go behind me and fill in the answer anyway. And the answer they pick is all over the place. My college records said I was white, my medical forms said I was black, some places I'm listed as hispanic.

After I had children, I became more consistent about filling in the forms for myself and them...we're just all black. I want to identify with whatever my kids are and although they are technically mixed as well, they don't ever get mistaken for being anything other than black.

I don't know what I would have done if I'd married a white man and my children were lighter than me. I might have just gone with white. I don't think there are any rules you have to follow. Just pick one that you most closely identify with or don't pick one at all. I think you can make your own rules.

You bring up some good points. I think I tend to classify biracial people by how they look. I'm not saying this should be the deciding factor, but that's what I find myself doing. See, I would say Halle Berry is black, but I'm more likely to say Jennifer Beals (from Flashdance) is white.

I have olive skin, as does my husband. In fact, we pretty much have the same skin color (except in the summer when he's darker. ) Our kids are actually lighter than us. My son has dark blond hair and both kids have fine hair (not thick and coarse like mine). Even with my black features, I frequently have people asking me about my ethnicity. My kids must really throw people for a loop.

 

[dis ms.]

Is the area you live in primarily black or white? I'd bet the school would like you to put whatever the minority is. I believe alot of funding is based off of that.

I live in Iowa. My area is definitely primarily white.

ETA: I do believe the funding is the school's motivation for asking about ethnicity. It just made me think about ethnicity and such.

 

[JoyG]

You bring up some good points. I think I tend to classify biracial people by how they look. I'm not saying this should be the deciding factor, but that's what I find myself doing. See, I would say Halle Berry is black, but I'm more likely to say Jennifer Beals (from Flashdance) is white.

I have olive skin, as does my husband. In fact, we pretty much have the same skin color (except in the summer when he's darker. ) Our kids are actually lighter than us. My son has dark blond hair and both kids have fine hair (not thick and coarse like mine). Even with my black features, I frequently have people asking me about my ethnicity. My kids must really throw people for a loop.

I agree. I do the same thing.

My brother is currently living as a hispanic man! He married a spanish woman and they are raising their children to be bilingual. He also is a hard one to "peg" racially so he just goes with the hispanic box...although we really aren't spanish at all!

 

[dizneenut]

I hate that question, too. I'm white, DH is Puerto Rican. I do mark that they are Hispanic. None of them really "look" all that Hispanic. They are a nice "tan" color, though.

 

[almburr]

my cousin is white and is married to a mexican(speaks no spanish). When thier first was born cousin would fill in half of the white box and half of the hispanic box. Oldest is dark brown, next is lighter, and the last one is white and blonde.

They have friends the dad is half Puerto Rican mom is white. They have 3 kids and call them the three quarter Ricans.

I did read somewhere that you were to fill in the box of what the father is.

 

[JunieJay]

We had a reduction in force at my workplace not long ago, and a group of people got together to collectively sue the company on grounds of discimination. They felt they were let go because of the color of their skin. We thought that odd with one woman in particular, since she appeared to be white, having blonde hair and blue eyes. Oddly enough, a great great grandparent was Hispanic, so she considered herself Hispanic, and she checked Hispanic on her work application. So that was one time when filling out the application worked in someone's favor.

My company is also trying to promote Hispanic females into leadership ranks, so you Hispanic females out there in corporate America, don't be shy about checking that box! We actively recruit Hispanic females and offer them opportunities that are not afforded to white or black females, simply because Hispanics in leadership roles are the minority.

 

[Robinrs]

This reminds me of the old Curtis Mayfield song "Choice of Colors"...

I'm sure you'll have this conversation with your children in the future. I had to explain it to my son. His grandmother is white and he came out very fair. He's in middle school now and daily he's asked "are you Black?" I trained him to answer "yes, why?" People rarely have much to say after that.

It's a shame that this is still going on in this day and age but unfortunately it does. I've found that "pat" answers stop the conversation. When people ask me "what is his father?" I say "a man." End of conversation.

 

[dis ms.]

When people ask me "what is his father?" I say "a man." End of conversation.

I love it. I was just asked this last week. I'll have to remember that.