Do you, in USA, consider hispanic people as white?

Question

I live in Belgium, and i think nobody here would consider Spaniards as non-white, but there seems to be a very special classification of people in USA, with black, hispanic, caucasian...So i'd like to heard what you think about it, you people from across the ocean...I don't know how to categorize this question so i put it in anthropology...btw could you correct my mistakes in english because english is not my native tongue...

Answer 1

At this moment i am embarrased to say I am American, the answers to your post are embarrasing and they show how ignorant most Americans are and what is even more embarassing is that many of the people posting are probably Hispanic themselves and don't even know the history of Latin America, they think white people or caucasians only exist in the United states or Europe and clearly this is not the case. Let me start off by giving a little history lesson to our readers. Latin America is called Latin America because it was colonized by Latin people(Spaniards, Portuguese and French) in Europe these people are called Latin or Latino in Spanish because they speak a Latin derived language. Now that i have explained this very simple fact that most Americans should have learned in school but obviously haven't we can move on the the next part of this discussion. Americans have this silly notion the Hispanic is a race of people and they aren't, they are simply a very diverse ethnic group that shares a common language which is spanish and people from Spain fall into this category as well and it has nothing to do with ones race, Hispanics come in all races, most Hispanics from Latin America are Mestizos which just means a mixture( usually White European and Native American Indian) there are parts of Mexico for example that have large populations of virtually pure European people and other areas of Mexico that are of pure indian descent and don't even speak Spanish they speak indian dialects and then there are countries like Uruguay and Argentina that are 97% white european which is a higher percentage of Causasians than even the United States or even some European Countries like France that have very high immigrant populations from Africa. Black people are also very important group in Latin America, countries like Cuba, Dominican Rebublic, Panama and other Carribbean countires have large Black populations as well and yes they are Black whose ancestors came from Africa during the slave trade and they speak Spanish and therefore are by definition are Hispanic and lastly you have the Spaniards which are obviously Hispanic since the language came from Spain and they are obviously mostly White European.
So to answer you question, Yes most Hispanics are White but some are Native American and Black and even Asian like Alberto Fujimori who was former President of Peru and was of Japanese ancestry.

Answer 2

I live in California. Most Spanish-speaking people here do not appear white. I understand how Spanish people from Spain and a lot of countries who speak Spanish don't have darker skin and could easily be considered as "White." I am Caucasian and mixed with many different backgrounds but even I don't have white skin. I think White is a poor classification. You are right that there are many classifications here but, for example, my daughter is 1/4 Japanese, about 1/4 Irish, and a lot more. I don't know if I should label her as Caucasian or Japanese or Other. You're English is very good for not being your native tongue.

Answer 3

I've mentioned this myself when someone would infer that Hispanics are something other than white. When I see them protesting in large numbers, I can't tell them from the rest of us.
It's just a way of separating them from the rest of the population.Why non-white, I don't know.
Your English is a lot better than that of many who were born and raised right here in the United States. A few small corrections are - - - capitalize English, Hispanic, etc. Also I instead of i . I believe you meant hear, the d is a mistake.
I would be happy to be of help at any time.

Answer 4

~I commend you on your command English. It is far better than most of the drivel on this site. Your grammar is good and you took the time to check your spelling. That is very refreshing.
"i think nobody here..." more properly would be "I don't think anyone here..."
"...i'd like to heard..." should be "...I'd like to hear..."
"English" should be capitalized.

As to your question, yes, there is a distinct classification here for Hispanics, but Spaniards would not qualify. Hispanics are Mexicans, Puerto Ricans and the like, consisting of mixed Spanish and Native and/or African bloodlines. The classification came about at the insistance of those who fit within the group. The term is the root of the racial slur "s p i c".

Answer 5

Your English is a lot better than that of many Americans on this board.

Spaniards are about as white as they come, but most hispanics Americans come in contact with are from the Americas, and are of Native American, European, or African descent, or some mixture of those--so often a mixture that many Americans think of hispanics as a separate race.

Answer 6

Actually Hispanics can be people of color as well as white. In Cuba for example, there are instances where Blacks and White Hispanics have intermarried...so we're typically not acquainted with the Spaniard, but more with Islanders, South and Central Americans

Answer 7

The problem in the US is that most people fail to distinguish between race and ethnicity. Race refers to Caucasian, *******, or Asian. Being Hispanic, or not, is a matter of ethnicity, which means ethnic or ancestral affiliation.

Within the Caucasian (white) race, there are Hispanics, and non-Hispanics. Likewise, within the ***** race, there are Hispanic, and non-Hispanic. Someone already mentioned people from Cuba and other Caribbean areas as being both black and Hispanic.

I know people from Mexico whose families have not intermarried with Indian (native Mexican) people, and they have very fair skin and blue eyes. So it's not simply a matter of being "Hispanic" in determining one's race.

"Hispanic" is NOT a racial division.\\

Answer 8

Well, I don't really think about races, I mean it's the stuff inside that matters, you know? But I don't consider Hispanics "white" since well that's how I was taught, but they're still just as good as "whites" but if you think about it, no one has "white" or "black" skin anyway. But who cares, everyone's a person, and as I said before, it's the stuff inside that counts
And about your English? It's perfect, don't worry! No mistakes! =D

Answer 9

Spaniards are rather different from hispanics, although they speak the same language. You just have to live around them to understand, they have an entirely different culture (almost like blacks in America and Kenyans are very different)

Answer 10

Hispanics are considered non-White. But there are other terms we use here too. Some people get offended by being called Hispanic, Mexican or Chicano. I feel the best term is Latino. But But there are mixed races too. Mulatto is mixed of Latinos and Blacks. There are other ones too that I can't think of off the top of my head.