The report released by the UCLA – Latino Policy and Politics Institute analyzes the flaws in the current methods of collecting racial and ethnic data used by federal surveys in the United States, including the Census. The study focuses particularly on the shortcomings that affect the representation of the Latino community, with a focus on Afro-Latinos, whose lived experiences are often not accurately reflected. Titled “Latino is Not a Race: Understanding Lived Experiences Through Street Race”, the report criticizes the approach taken by the U.S. government's Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which the authors say fails to take into account the complexities and nuances of racial identity within the Latino community.
In March 2024, the U.S. government revised its approach to racial and ethnic classification, combining questions about race and ethnicity into a single query on federal forms. This shift allowed respondents to choose multiple categories simultaneously, such as "black," "American Indian," and "Hispanic." Despite this apparent flexibility, the UCLA report highlights that this methodology can lead to misclassifications, especially for Afro-Latinos and other minority subgroups within the Latino community. For example, individuals who identify as Latino while also selecting a racial category such as "white" or "black" are at risk of being designated as "multiracial" by the Census Bureau, rather than being recognized as Latino of a specific race. In addition, the Census traditionally prioritizes the idea of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity as being derived from a Spanish-speaking heritage, which may exclude other groups, such as Brazilians, from proper categorization.
This inappropriate categorization is not just a technical issue, but has serious implications for the principle of self-identification, making groups like Afro-Latinos more invisible in statistics. Cecilia Nuñez, co-author of the report, emphasizes that these failures have a profound impact on public policy development and resource allocation. Accurate data is essential for creating effective policies that address systemic inequalities faced by Latinos and can bring about meaningful change.
To address these issues, the UCLA report proposes introducing a new category of "Street Race" in the Census. This additional question would seek to capture how respondents believe others perceive their race based on their physical appearance. The researchers argue that this approach will provide a more accurate understanding of how Latinos are racialized in everyday life and may help correct some of the limitations associated with the combined issue of race and ethnicity.
The concept of "street race" is highlighted in the report as a way to challenge the notion that race is a purely biological or genetic issue. Instead, the study states that race should be understood as a largely visual social status, shaped by factors such as physical appearance and geographic origin. This is particularly relevant for Afro-Latinos, who, due to their phenotypic characteristics, may be more subject to racism and discrimination than white Latinos. This situation can be further aggravated by factors such as limited English proficiency or questions about your immigration status.
The report concludes that by failing to capture the complexity of the racial and ethnic identities of Latinos, especially Afro-Latinos, federal surveys fail to provide the data needed to address the structural inequalities affecting these communities. The inclusion of new approaches, such as the "street race", could significantly improve the accuracy of the data, allowing for the formulation of fairer and more effective public policies.
