# How do organizations define minority status when people are getting more "blended"?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-organizations-define-minority-status-when-people-are-getting-more-blended/200229>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 8, 2003, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-organizations-define-minority-status-when-people-are-getting-more-blended/200229 "2003-09-08T04:55:15Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\
**Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-organizations-define-minority-status-when-people-are-getting-more-blended/200229/1 "2003-09-08T04:55:15Z")

</div>

In filling out institutional (university, military, government etc) applications at what point of racial blending with whites does a “black” person essentially lose their definitional status as a minority?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![istara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e79b87/32.png) [@istara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/istara)\
**Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-organizations-define-minority-status-when-people-are-getting-more-blended/200229/2 "2003-09-08T13:02:27Z")

</div>

Some governments go by fractions where as long as you are eg 1/16th aboriginal, you can get status/benefits associated with that ethnicity. Others hold by the “one drop” (I believe it’s called in the US?) rule - any trace of native ancestry, and you can be considered native.

I am not sure what the flip of this is: eg, if a person wishes to define as non-ethnic minority. Eg if you are mixed race, but look more African American, can you get definitional status as white? Or choose?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\
**Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-organizations-define-minority-status-when-people-are-getting-more-blended/200229/3 "2003-09-08T13:31:39Z")

</div>

The Master [speaks](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_049.html).

Also, see Airman’s current thread in GD about claiming minority status. (I’d link, but the commection is wonky.)

Robin