<p>I think some of the posters are talking gray areas and, frankly, I'm not talking gray areas-- I'm talking about lying. </p>
<p>I don't have a problem with a kid who is part-something (edited to add: not 1/64!!!) saying that's what they are although I do think there should be a cultural tie. There are things my kids could check off which they didn't because that's not how they identify and were raised. But I also realize that some people experience prejudice because of an ethnicity to which they have few cultural ties. (For example, there are people living in Texas who have been in this country for centuries-- and have Hispanic last names and look ethnically like recent immigrants.) So that's a gray area. </p>
<p>South African is not a gray area. And a half-Asian, half-Hispanic is <em>not</em> African-American by definition, even if the Hispanic part is full black (which, in her case, it wasn't). A Hispanic designation encompasses all races and usually includes people who are white, black, Indian, mixed. </p>
<p>As far as a magnet school program looking all white and having a number of kids who say they're Hispanic-- that's entirely possible. Even in Latin America, the most educated and richest are often the white descendants of Europeans. Although we generally think of Spaniards, there are large pockets of German descendants in Chile/ Argentina/ Paraguay, Italians and French in Argentina and Chile, Japanese in Peru... etcetera. A Hispanic can look a lot of ways.</p>
<p>MODERATOR'S NOTE TO "How common is it to lie/ exaggerate about race? ..." THREAD: </p>
<p>By repeated member request and with the agreement of the moderation team, I will move this thread to the ethnic self-identification in college admission FAQ thread on the College Admission Forum, which is the one-stop shopping (or one-look avoiding) place for discussions of college affirmative action policies.</p>
<p>[Moderator's note: Discussion of the recent general practice of merging threads about affirmative action together on one forum is welcome in the form of "report problem post" messages to the moderation team as a whole, or as private messages to any of the moderators, but it is against the Terms of Service on College Confidential to post discussions of moderation on public threads. See the Terms of Service </p>
<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/faq.php?faq=vb_faq#faq_new_faq_item%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/faq.php?faq=vb_faq#faq_new_faq_item</a> </p>
<p>for more details. Please feel very free to express your point of view on the issues discussed in this thread in the thread, and to express your point of view on how the forum is moderated privately to the moderation team.]</p>
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I know of a public school gifted program that has "seats" for so many african american girls, african american boys, lation girls, latino boys, white girls etc etc. (I personally find it ridiculous, possibly illegal.)
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<p>The federal Constitution requires "equal protection" under the law with regard to race, so it may very well be illegal to set up a public school program that way. Most programs that have been invalidated in federal court cases have had a quota structure something like that. But note that sometimes race-conscious programs can be ordered by federal courts as an equitable remedy for past de jure or de facto segregation practiced by that public school system. So, not knowing the facts in the particular local case you know about, I have no opinion about whether that program would survive legal challenge or not.</p>
<p>RE: Hispanic</p>
<p>The US census bureau records Happydad as "Hispanic". Happydaughter considers herself "Latina". They are both paler than Happymom whose family is all from Germany and Sweden. Happydad's grandparents were all from northern Spain, and then immigrated to the new world, where Happydad was born in one Spanish-speaking country, and Happydaughter was born in another.</p>
<p>We all speak Spanish (mine is the funky, second language variety, theirs is the native-speaker variety), they have "Hispanic" surnames, I don't. And while I think it is rather sweet that my daughter considers herself "Latina", it is hard for me to believe that a true Latina can possibly have a mother who thinks of tuna casserole as comfort food! Isn't there some unwritten rule that kids inherit their mom's cultural identity?</p>
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What does that mean? How would you "prove" that? My children are half Hispanic and half Arab. How do I show that their ethnicities "affect" their lives??? Do you mean on a college app we'd somehow have to show discrimination based on their backgrounds? Or prove that we had pinatas at their birthday parties or grow and roll our own grape leaves?</p>
<p>Sorry, if I sound snotty. That just rubbed me the wrong way.
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<p>Sorry that my comments offended you. Colleges don't expect anyone to "prove" anything but if someone is from a particular back round yet has no real connection to their cultural heritage why should they get a boost when they apply to college? I am talking about kids that are distant from any cultural connection. It turns out that my family has a distant American Indian heritage yet other than a certain pride in that I don't see why my child should use it. It is not part of our cultural lives. Colleges would disagree because at least on paper they want to look culturally diverse.</p>
<p>Colleges in fact have no way to verify what students self-report about ethnicity.</p>
<p>No prob. I totally understand what you're saying. </p>
<p>But while all four of my grandparents came from Mexico, and my parents' first language was Spanish, they were very much into assimilation and so refused to teach us Spanish. Because I am not fluent some might think I don't have the same credentials as other Hispanics and, there wouldn't have the same "connection" that others do, but I absolutely consider myself Hispanic and have worked hard to teach my kids about this part of their heritage and about the struggles my parents and grandparents faced as migrant workers. Some other parent at my kids' schools would have no idea -- to look at me and them and our achievements -- what our family has faced, how my parents had to drop out of school in eighth grade (mom) and sixth grade (dad), how two of my mom's siblings died as toddlers due to insufficient health care. So, I think it's best to not be too judgmental (not saying you are) about what goes on/has gone on behind closed doors.</p>
<p>Obviously, this has struck a nerve with me!!!! :) I keep wanting to hold my tongue, but can't help myself.</p>
<p>Did you all think affirmative action was really about race? </p>
<p>It's about encouraging socioeconomic/cultural diversity, some traits of which bears a correlation to race. The actual genetics doesn't matter.</p>
<p>But galoisen, does the app ask "With what culture do you identify?" or "How has your life been so far?"? No, it asks for your ethnicity.</p>
<p>Here's the link (from above in this thread) to the latest federal Department of Education regulations about how colleges are to ask about ethnicity. </p>
<p><a href="http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20071800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2007/pdf/E7-20613.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20071800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2007/pdf/E7-20613.pdf</a> </p>
<p>Note that what the student says in response to such questions is always optional.</p>
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But galoisen, does the app ask "With what culture do you identify?" or "How has your life been so far?"? No, it asks for your ethnicity.
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<p>Because you do that in the essay. :) </p>
<p>College ethnicity is just a convenient label for all of those things that correlate with actual ethnicity. Furthermore. you can be genetically Irish but not ethnically Irish, genetically Jewish but not ethnically so, etc.</p>
<p>I think the colleges would rather hear about your passions than your background in your essays.</p>
<p>Colleges also like to hear about students overcoming adversity, including that tied to culture, ethnicity and economics.</p>
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Colleges also like to hear about students overcoming adversity, including that tied to culture, ethnicity and economics.
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<p>Yes. It would always be a good idea for an applicant who has experienced invidious ethnic prejudice, or any other kind of prejudice, but who has overcome that prejudice and achieved against the odds to mention that in a college application essay.</p>
<p>I wonder if they consider Filipinos differently than Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese?</p>
<p>Why would people say that Filipinos aren't Asians? Seems rather obvious that they are...</p>
<p>alex994, probably because the Phillippines were a Spanish colony for a very long time, and most filipinos have a direct heritage to spanish ancestry whereas a lot of filipinos (from many I know) don't have any asian heritage. For instance, I am Filipino/Spanish/Italian and don't have any direct asian heritage. However, because of location, the Phillippines are considered asian. I don't know, just my take on it.</p>
<p>The U.S. government consider Filipinos as "Asians."</p>
<p>alex994, the Philippines is more "Pacific Islander" than it is Asian.</p>
<p>And yes, Filipinos are relatively well-off in the U.S.</p>
<p>Filipino</a> American - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>
<p>Median Household Income: 2004</p>
<p>Asian Indians $68,771
Filipinos $65,700
Chinese $57,433
Japanese $53,763
Koreans $43,195
Whites $48,784</p>
<p>Total US Population $44,684</p>