Posted on 12/17/2009 9:20:07 AM PST by NativeNewYorker
DEARBORN, Mich., Dec. 17 (UPI) -- Ethnic groups, especially Arab-Americans, say the U.S. census all but eliminates any way of distinguishing their background by simply classifying them as white. "It's unfair because we are not treated as white in society and by the government, but we also don't qualify as minorities to get the benefits of some programs" such as minority contracts, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Regional Director Imad Hamad said. The concern arose because, for the first time, the regular 2010 U.S. census form eliminates a question asking people about their ancestry. Government officials say they shortened the form so more people would fill it out than in previous decades. The U.S. Census Bureau considers anyone with Middle Eastern roots, for instance, as white. "That's just weird to me," said Khadigah Alasry, 23, whose parents were born in Yemen. Alasry of Dearborn, Mich., has light-brown skin and told the Detroit Free Press she doesn't consider herself white.
"There is no such thing as white culture," said Thaddeus Radzilowski, president of the Piast Institute, a Polish-American group near Detroit.
Having the ancestry question "provides a better notion of our pluralistic society and who we are," the newspaper quoted him as saying.
"We're aware of the problems with the census," U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, a Chinese-American, told an Arab-American group in Dearborn, Mich. "But we still need you to participate."
Locke, whose department oversees the Census Bureau, said the ancestry question remained on the American Community Survey, sent to some 250,000 addresses monthly to replace the decennial census' long form.
How about Mecca bowing swine?
I always wondered what a can of black Kiwi shoe polish would do for me. Think I could get extra benefits if I kiwied myself as an ‘African American’?
If they really mean that they want to be treated as “White” in America, they should behave like good citizens.
There’s just no profit in being plain ol’ ‘white’.
“It’s unfair because we are not treated as white in society and by the government, but we also don’t qualify as minorities to get the benefits of some programs” such as minority contracts, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Regional Director Imad Hamad said.
Tuff sh#t!
You do not deserve minority status...even less so than others do.
Number of people in the home: X
Mail census in.
Grrrrr!!!!
how true!
when my daughter was looking for help to go to school, it was a no go, as she is white, single without children, and knows who her parents are.
The article is right. “White” isn’t an ethnicity. A Fleming isn’t a Macedonian.
I like how these maggots immigrate here VOLUNTARILY and demand to get a leg up on the natives. This is an outrageous game and the Arabs are not the only ones in on the scam
If anything natives should get preference over immigrants but I’ll settle for zero affirmative action and zero special programs for you if you belong to a favored ethnic group
That's because some muslims see themselves as a master race, above the lowly subhuman kufir. They claim that Jews are the offspring of pigs and monkeys.
Meanwhile I'll point out that "caucasian" is a discredited bogus scientific claim that is used nowhere else to define "white people".
Try cordovan. You could open a casino that way.
Not treated as equals to whites in society? No kidding. They bend over backwards for you.
“It’s unfair because we are not treated as white in society and by the government, but we also don’t qualify as minorities to get the benefits of some programs” - so you agree that Affirmative Action is racially dicrimantory?
“’we also don’t qualify as minorities to get the benefits of some programs’ such as minority contracts, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Regional Director Imad Hamad said.”
How about instead we hustle you out of our country, camel-butt?
Go home and shake down a mullah.
Ha! They think they got it bad? How about us Finno-Irish? We need special programs too. Preferably those programs would include liberal supplies “Murphy’s Stout” and much quality time with Monica Bellucci.
If the darling little MURDERING TERRORIST CULT members are WHITE.....
They Can’t WHINE RACISM.... PISS be upon you
I would like to the “race” box eliminated alltogether on all govt forms.
In other words we want special privileges too without having to work for them
I’m so sick of this crap. Get the hell out if you dont like it here.
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