The Census Bureau is struggling to find survey terms that enable
people to identify themselves according to "race" and
"ethnicity" in the words that they themselves use. As the
demographic mix of the country changes, the terms in which
people understand their own identities also change. The result
will undoubtedly seem jarring to some people, while to others it
will simply state the obvious. According to Hope Yen: I'm
fascinated that many Latinos, just at the moment when they are
making their communities felt within the national polity,
apparently want to label themselves a "race." Historically in
the United States, where "white" and "black" defined who was on
top and who was held down, getting out of a race check box and
assimilating as a kind of "white" was part of coming into full
citizenship. But current Census research apparently finds that
Hispanics or Latinos want to be called a "race." Other
interesting findings about our racial understandings turned up
in this Census research: - "Removing the term 'N