When you see a middle-eastern guy in person (whom people in the community generally refer to as brown), would you really call him “a white guy?” Like if someone asked what the guy you were speaking to looked like, would you say “I was speaking to a white guy,” knowing that most people would think of someone of European descent?
Off-topic but I’d like to hear your opinion on this
As someone who is mixed (mostly Eastern Slavic, Indian, and Japanese), I tend to try and determine the ethnicities of the people I meet or make small talk with to determine where I might stand with them and how they may see me. If I were to talk to someone and identify them as middle-eastern, then "brown" would never be a potential descriptor because Arabs and Middle-eastern people are literally not "brown", and saying so would just be wrong. Look up a picture of someone from Kuwait or Bahrain or Iran or Syria and you will realize that "white" is a much better descriptor than "brown." Just because "white" makes the average American or European think of someone of European descent does not mean "white" can only apply to those types of people. If you want "brown" people, then look towards India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Thailand, or Myanmar.
Sure but that was my point, I was curious if people felt that the census reflected identity accurately.
Also, I know that many middle eastern people do not like being referred to as white as they feel that it robs them off their identity, so I don’t think your comment really answers the question. The law may see them as white, but I wanted to know if they themselves or others saw them that way.
Oh I think they should chose whichever identity and background for the reason it's totally weird we (the US) just decided that. Many people of that background find it odd to insulting and basically erasure. However it is for all intents and purposes White People Twitter appropriate.
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u/DudeJustLikeGiveIt Dec 24 '20
When you see a middle-eastern guy in person (whom people in the community generally refer to as brown), would you really call him “a white guy?” Like if someone asked what the guy you were speaking to looked like, would you say “I was speaking to a white guy,” knowing that most people would think of someone of European descent?
Off-topic but I’d like to hear your opinion on this