‘Everyone just gets that we’re mixed’: racial identification among Puerto Ricans in New York City and Orlando

ABSTRACT

Previous research shows that racial identification patterns among stateside Puerto Ricans deviate from the Black-White binary that has historically characterized the U.S. colour line. Thus, scholars and policymakers continue to debate the most accurate approach for racially classifying the stateside Puerto Rican – and broader Latinx – population. I address this debate by examining the process of racial identification among Puerto Ricans living in New York City and Orlando, Florida. Data from 58 in-depth interviews and the U.S. Census show that Puerto Ricans merge racial and ethnic conceptualizations when constructing racial identities. This is why most Puerto Ricans report their race as Hispanic/Latina/o. Place-based differences in racial identification also emerge, particularly when respondents are presented with separate race and Hispanic origin questions. I argue that the timing of Puerto Rican migration and the racial histories and demography of each place lead Puerto Ricans to develop different understandings of race.

KEYWORDS:

• Race
• racial identification
• place
• census
• Puerto Ricans
• migration

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Hispanic and Latina/o are used interchangeably throughout this paper to refer to official census categories and the categories used by interview respondents. I use “Latinx” in other areas of the paper to recognize gender inclusivity.

2 I employ Roth’s (2012) definition of racial schemas to refer to racial categories and rules for what they signify, how they are ordered, and how to apply them.

3 Grosfoguel and Georas (2000) also note that Afro-Puerto Ricans often face stronger racial discrimination than lighter-skinned Puerto Ricans.

4 UNC Chapel Hill’s Office of Human Research Ethics determined this study (#19-1368) to be exempt from further review according to the regulatory category, “Survey, interview, public observation” under 45 CFR 46.101(b).

5 “Boricua” comes from the indigenous Taíno word “Boriken.” Today Puerto Ricans colloquially use it to refer to someone of Puerto Rican descent.

6 See Glazer and Moynihan’s (1970) second edition of Beyond the Melting Pot: The Negroes, Puerto Ricans, Jews, Italians, and Irish of New York City.

7 Only two respondents reported selecting Black on census forms but otherwise racially identified as Hispanic.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Center for the Study of the American South, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Graduate School, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College; Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Research in Black Culture and History; Social Science Research Council.