Mixed Media Watch reports that Two mixed race organizations say no to Ward’s proposed multiracial category:
Two leading advocacy groups representing the interests of mixed race Americans came out in opposition today to University of California (UC) Regent Ward Connerly’s proposal to add a multiracial/multiethnic category to UC undergraduate admissions applications.
MAVIN Foundation and Hapa Issues Forum (HIF) expressed their concern that Connerly’s proposal would significantly reduce the accuracy of data collection on UC applicants and students and undermine federal reporting requirements for a check one or more option on racial data. The UC system currently allows applicants to check one or more racial boxes on undergraduate admissions forms but assigns a single race or ethnic category to applicants who check more than one box when reporting their data to the U.S. Department of Education (DOE). Both MAVIN and HIF look forward to working with UC and the DOE to develop policy that will allow institutions to report more than one race as required by Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Directive 15.
The part that was glaringly left out of the press release was that regardless of how many boxes you check, in the end, you are still counted as ONE “race” only. The one-drop rule is still in effect with regard to the Census and has been since the “check all that apply” decision was issued.
Some organizations need to be a little more honest about the what’s really going on with regard to Census tabulations and official use of the data. Its not a state secret and having participated in the process, I’m a little tired of the half-truths and historical revisionism.
This entry also posted at A Mixed Blog.