Why is the term Hispanic used as an ethnic category instead of Mestizo?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The discussion on the Entertainment board regarding whether Giselle Bundchen is Hispanic got me thinking, why is the term Hispanic used instead of Mestizo? The category of Hispanic is so broad that it is practically meaningless. Technically a person of any race who hails from a Spanish/Portuguese speaking country of Central/South America is Hispanic. But in reality, I think most people tend to think of Hispanic as a brown person from one of these countries. and not all Hispanics are brown. The brown ones are a mix of American Indian and European ancestry. They are Mestizo. These are the people who others can identify as being Hispanic and are more likely to experience racism. When people speak of Hispanic as a racial category they are generally referring to those who have the American Indian ancestry, not someone from Mexico who has practically 100% Spanish ancestry. It just seems that the official definition of Hispanic does not match the reality of what people actually consider Hispanic. What people consider to be Hispanic is actually Mestizo, so why don't we start using that term instead?

OP, good question, but your answers make no sense.

The main point to keep in mind is that being Hispanic/ Latino is an ethnicity -- your culture, your values, your historic references, your social links, your language and music and food.

It has nothing to do with race.

And, yes, this is difficult for race-obsessed Anglos to understand, but it's pretty much the norm not only in Latin America but in many other regions.

Perhaps many in our country could learn a thing or two from them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The discussion on the Entertainment board regarding whether Giselle Bundchen is Hispanic got me thinking, why is the term Hispanic used instead of Mestizo? The category of Hispanic is so broad that it is practically meaningless. Technically a person of any race who hails from a Spanish/Portuguese speaking country of Central/South America is Hispanic. But in reality, I think most people tend to think of Hispanic as a brown person from one of these countries. and not all Hispanics are brown. The brown ones are a mix of American Indian and European ancestry. They are Mestizo. These are the people who others can identify as being Hispanic and are more likely to experience racism. When people speak of Hispanic as a racial category they are generally referring to those who have the American Indian ancestry, not someone from Mexico who has practically 100% Spanish ancestry. It just seems that the official definition of Hispanic does not match the reality of what people actually consider Hispanic. What people consider to be Hispanic is actually Mestizo, so why don't we start using that term instead?

I will call people what they want to be called, and if a person wants to identify as mestizo, then fine.

However, I just want to point out people from Brazil are not Hispanic. They are LatinX. But not Hispanic.

They are not LatinX either -- that's a horrible invention made up by people who speak neither Spanish nor Portuguese.

They are Brazilians and Latinos/ Latinas.

[Anonymous]

People in my area say Mexican (which is more often than not accurate; I don't live in DC) or Latino/a. I don't hear Hispanic much anymore, other than on government surveys.

I'm white and generally just try to use whatever term the group/person I'm talking about uses. Like "the Mexican American population in <this neighborhood>" or whatever. Or 'supermercado" instead of "Hispanic grocery store."

Grew up in a region with a huge native population. They called themselves natives, or... more commonly (gasp) the actual name of their group (Yupik, etc).

It's not rocket science and it seems to be mostly white people who freak out about this. Call people what they want to be called and if in doubt, ask.

[Anonymous]

It is odd indeed that white Spanish people whose ancestors raped, pillaged, plundered and small pox-blanketed natives can claim affirmative action.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The reality is that most people identify with their ethnic country. They are Mexican, Guatemalan, Argentine, Peruvian, etc. None of them say they are Hispanic or Latino. Those are labels created by white people. Similarly, I don't identify as Caucasian non-Hispanic (or whatever nonsensical category I've seen recently on medical and school forms).

Their what?

The person who was born and raised in the US (and thus is 100% American) who identifies as Mexican because their ethnicity is tied to Mexico. America is their country of origin, and Mexico is their ethnic country.

[Anonymous]

Why on medical forms do you have to say whether you are or are not Hispanic? I put not Hispanic and then they had listed us as Hispanic!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is odd indeed that white Spanish people whose ancestors raped, pillaged, plundered and small pox-blanketed natives can claim affirmative action.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is odd indeed that white Spanish people whose ancestors raped, pillaged, plundered and small pox-blanketed natives can claim affirmative action.

Tell this mestiza citizen more about affirmative action because I see more funds going to daca kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why on medical forms do you have to say whether you are or are not Hispanic? I put not Hispanic and then they had listed us as Hispanic!

You don't have to. If you don't want to, then don't.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, what difference does it make?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is odd indeed that white Spanish people whose ancestors raped, pillaged, plundered and small pox-blanketed natives can claim affirmative action.

Tell this mestiza citizen more about affirmative action because I see more funds going to daca kids.

No funds are going to DACA recipients. They pay their way. They pay a fee.

[Anonymous]

OP, that's n interesting but loaded question (but you knew that). You are also generalizing in a way that kind of undermines your point. A lot of the brownness of the Caribbean, for example is African not indigenous.

I am not splitting hairs here--these differences lay at the heart of your question. When the term "Hispanic" was in vogue--which it isn't really anymore--people likes it because it unified people's of different ancestry through their language--Spanish. Brazilians were never included. For a while the term was used more specifically for US-born people of Latin American decent as opposed to "Latin Americans." Even when almost everyone said "hispanic" academic circles lots of people preferred "Latino" because it harkened back much farther... skipping the conquering nations AND because it included speakers of other languages like the Brazilians.

All that said, people don't use "mestizo" because... it is a totally dated term that was common at a time when the social hierarchies were fixed and being "mestizo" was inferior to "criollo" which was inferior to European and so on and so forth. Why would anyone bring back a term from that time? Bizarre. It sounds as dated as saying "Moor"... or actually, what it really sounds like is saying "why doesn't anybody say 'mulatto' anymore?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is odd indeed that white Spanish people whose ancestors raped, pillaged, plundered and small pox-blanketed natives can claim affirmative action.

Take your meds, anglob#tch.

50% of US Latinos are half-white half-indigenous.

The real genocide is what happened in the US and what you celebrate with every Presidents Day and July 4th and Veterans Day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The discussion on the Entertainment board regarding whether Giselle Bundchen is Hispanic got me thinking, why is the term Hispanic used instead of Mestizo? The category of Hispanic is so broad that it is practically meaningless. Technically a person of any race who hails from a Spanish/Portuguese speaking country of Central/South America is Hispanic. But in reality, I think most people tend to think of Hispanic as a brown person from one of these countries. and not all Hispanics are brown. The brown ones are a mix of American Indian and European ancestry. They are Mestizo. These are the people who others can identify as being Hispanic and are more likely to experience racism. When people speak of Hispanic as a racial category they are generally referring to those who have the American Indian ancestry, not someone from Mexico who has practically 100% Spanish ancestry. It just seems that the official definition of Hispanic does not match the reality of what people actually consider Hispanic. What people consider to be Hispanic is actually Mestizo, so why don't we start using that term instead?

OP, good question, but your answers make no sense.

The main point to keep in mind is that being Hispanic/ Latino is an ethnicity -- your culture, your values, your historic references, your social links, your language and music and food.

It has nothing to do with race.

And, yes, this is difficult for race-obsessed Anglos to understand, but it's pretty much the norm not only in Latin America but in many other regions.

Perhaps many in our country could learn a thing or two from them.

I get this. But most whites don't consider indigenous looking Hispanics to be White and I doubt that they consider themselves white either. And most people don't feel comfortable referring to someone like Giselle as Hispanic because she's white. So why isn't the term Mestizo used more often sense it seems to be a more accurate descriptor?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The discussion on the Entertainment board regarding whether Giselle Bundchen is Hispanic got me thinking, why is the term Hispanic used instead of Mestizo? The category of Hispanic is so broad that it is practically meaningless. Technically a person of any race who hails from a Spanish/Portuguese speaking country of Central/South America is Hispanic. But in reality, I think most people tend to think of Hispanic as a brown person from one of these countries. and not all Hispanics are brown. The brown ones are a mix of American Indian and European ancestry. They are Mestizo. These are the people who others can identify as being Hispanic and are more likely to experience racism. When people speak of Hispanic as a racial category they are generally referring to those who have the American Indian ancestry, not someone from Mexico who has practically 100% Spanish ancestry. It just seems that the official definition of Hispanic does not match the reality of what people actually consider Hispanic. What people consider to be Hispanic is actually Mestizo, so why don't we start using that term instead?

I will call people what they want to be called, and if a person wants to identify as mestizo, then fine.

However, I just want to point out people from Brazil are not Hispanic. They are LatinX. But not Hispanic.

They are not LatinX either -- that's a horrible invention made up by people who speak neither Spanish nor Portuguese.

They are Brazilians and Latinos/ Latinas.

I just thought that was a typo