What about the white ethnic group?

Question

Definition:
ethnic
–adjective 1. pertaining to or characteristic of a people, esp. a group (ethnic group) sharing a common and distinctive culture, religion, language, or the like.
2. referring to the origin, classification, characteristics, etc., of such groups.
3. being a member of an ethnic group.
4. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of members of such a group.
5. belonging to or deriving from the cultural, racial, religious, or linguistic traditions of a people or country: ethnic dances.
6. Obsolete. pagan; heathen.
–noun 7. a member of an ethnic group.

According to the definition above, white is as much an ethnic group as hispanic, black, asian, etc. So why are only minority groups referred to as ethnic groups? Aren't we all members of an ethnic groups w/ our own history & traditions?

Answer 1

"White" is totally an ethnic group. It's members are European Americans. The "White" cultural background is the predominant and almost a sort of "default" group in the Euro-centric America, which is why it is rarely referred to as an actual "ethnic group".

It is ignorant whenever people use the term "ethnic" to refer to only non-caucasian races or cultures. For example, every type of food is an "ethnic" food.

Answer 2

Do you not think you've answered your own question? would you make an argument to say the Polish are the same as the Irish or the British? We are different ethnic groups, we are (for the most part) from different islands, different cultures, different languages (English is spoken as a first language for most Irish, there are historical reasons for that) Have you actually read anything the history of these islands? In the UK today, ethnicity & nationality are fiercely contested, has that debate passed you by? If we were more or less the same, why were we discriminated against historically? Why was it felt necessary to recognise us as a separate ethnic group in the first place?

Answer 3

Actually, there are many white ethnic groups. In my current area we have old German and Polish settlements. Where I grew up on the East Coast we had alot of Italians. They had a completely different dialect, different preferred styles for hair and clothing, different way of talking to their family, friends, strangers, etc. Gender roles were slightly different, etc. And now I can't get a decent pizza to save my life. And nationality aside, moving from the East coast to the Midwest, surrounded by white folks was a huge culture shock. Years later I'm still confused by the way people talk and shocked by the way people act. And they say folks on the East coast are rude! But it's really a matter of values, which are culturally determined.

Alas.

But no, there is no true white ethnic group because white isn't a homogeny. It's also rediculous to toss all blacks into a single ethnic group or hispanics. You've got black people form any country in Africa, the carribean, South America, the American Midwest, East Coast and down South they have very little in common with each other. It's pretty disgusting actually. Lumping people together like that.

If you fill out a questionnaire with an ethnic group question, don't worry, white groups have an option. Caucasion. Where they got that I don't know. My ancestors aren't from Caucas (Eastern Europe). They're from Germany, Northern Michigan (Ojibwe) and Western Africa. I personally leave that question blank if they let me.

Answer 4

Color is not an ethnicity... For whites, like anyone else, the ethnicity would be by individual country of genetic origin... Some "white" backgrounds and genetic makeup are very different from each other.

Answer 5

white ethnic groups are regional like british or scandinavian or cajun.

Answer 6

yes we all are but whites are not allowed to have any kind of groups we call our own. We don't have a culture if you ask a black person we stole it all from them.

Answer 7

Yes. Italians, Irish, French, German, Norwegians, etc.

Answer 8

White is a color not an ethnicity-white people are just white-skinned Europeans, the "white" race doesn't exist.

Answer 9

yeah

Answer 10

Because y'all got everything else, Damn already!!!