Why are non-Caucasians called "people of color"?

The BBQ Pit
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[QUOTE=Chimera]

Unfortunately, I hear the term on a fairly regular basis, working as I do for an extremely liberal Liberal Arts college in a liberal state.

I hate it. It’s a racist term that divides the world into two camps. White People, and Everyone Else.
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That’s one way to look at it. To me, it’s not some powerful tool for dividing society.

It’s shorthand.

It’s an easy way to say “blacks, african-americans, asians, asian-americans, pacific islander, hispanic, latino…” you get the picture. Like it or not, on a lot of college campuses there is still a need to refer to non-white students in some collective form, what with support offices, scholarships, policies, research and other matters that concern this group of students particularly. Some people are apparently troubled by the term “minority,” and it doesn’t always fit, either (non-white students aren’t always in the minority). So saying “students of color” is a handy way of naming this collective.

It’s just easier. Call it lazy. It’s like using LGBT, or “Greeks” for fraternal letter organizations. Easier, faster, lazier.

I’m surprised by people who think this is some verboten term, like “colored person” is. “Person of color” or “students of color” doesn’t have the same usage, and thus doesn’t have the same connotations (well, for some, anyway).

If y’all don’t mind I’ve got to get back to my busy job oppressing and dividing people so they don’t keep threatening the exalted position of my own race.

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[QUOTE=Who_me?]
At least my world won’t consist of padded walls.
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Don’t you believe it is possible to be tooth-spitting mad without being insane?

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As I understand it, “people of color” is just a euphemism for “non-white.”

Now that I’ve answered the thread’s question, I may as well read some of the replies…

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[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers]
Now that I’ve answered the thread’s question, I may as well read some of the replies…
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:smack:

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[QUOTE=carnivorousplant]
Don’t you believe it is possible to be tooth-spitting mad without being insane?
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Actually… no. I’ve been upset, I’ve been enraged, but I don’t think I’ve ever been as frothing at the mouth delusional as the OP.

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So… why is this continuing? This guy is a total asshole, yeah, but he appears to be mentally ill.

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[QUOTE=Rigamarole]
Um, since about the 1950’s, they’re not.
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Untrue, even in lib’rul academia: cite cite cite

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[QUOTE=tomndebb]

And, again, you are simply lying about the Gates’s. You are making it up as you go along.
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I believe in this case, he’s talking about the Gates Millenium Scholarship, the website of which can be found here: https://www.gmsp.org/

It is restricted to low income minority students. In fairness to the Gates’s, the Gates Foundation offers other scholarship programs that aren’t restricted by race.

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[QUOTE=CrankyAsAnOldMan]

It’s an easy way to say “blacks, african-americans, asians, asian-americans, pacific islander, hispanic, latino…” you get the picture. Like it or not, on a lot of college campuses there is still a need to refer to non-white students in some collective form, what with support offices, scholarships, policies, research and other matters that concern this group of students particularly. Some people are apparently troubled by the term “minority,” and it doesn’t always fit, either (non-white students aren’t always in the minority). So saying “students of color” is a handy way of naming this collective.
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The problem with it, though, is that it does lump together "“blacks, african-americans, asians, asian-americans, pacific islander, hispanic, latino…”, as you said, as a single group, when in fact, you’re dealing with a diverse group of people with diverse interests and needs.

In fact, I do sort of agree with the OP a little bit in that a lot of times when the term is used, it’s used in the context of “groups being oppressed by the white power structure”, and by the type of people (deconstructionalists, left wing radicals, etc.) who tend to focus a lot on institutionalized discrimination, as well as tending toward the whole 'western culture bad" idea and that most of the problems in society are the fault of rich, old, white, straight, conservative males and the power structure they maintain. Of course, where the OP and I part company is the assumption that it’s part of some overarching conspiracy by the media and mainstream left to somehow destroy White Culture or somesuch.

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Please don’t ban GuyNBlueJeans.
This is some of the funniest, off-the-wall, batshit insane posting I have ever seen.
I know we shouldn’t laugh at obviously sick people, but come on…

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The old nomenclature for “students of color” was “minority students.” Minority is slightly pejorative, as it insinuates a lesser-than status. Minority political party is clearly referring to having fewer seats in a legislative body, for instance, but referring to a person as a minority… well, it makes them sound like less of person at times. (This is not a point I’m arguing; I’m just trying to explain the logic.)

Then for a time the term ALANA or AHANA sprung up. It stands for:
[ul]
[li]African-[/li][li]Latino/Hispanic[/li][li]Asian-[/li][li]Native [/li][li]Americans[/li][/ul]
Pretty good, but a lot of times it was confusing (“Who’s this Alana person, and why is she having a meeting?”).

People/students of color probably came to the fore in the early 1990s and as CrankyAsAnOldMan notes, it’s usually shorthand and carries little political weight. It’s nicer than “minority,” which is also inaccurate at some campuses (Berkeley, for instance) and less of a mouthful than naming every group. Also it has the added plus of being very inclusive of all non-White students, who often feel that they’re not counted or included in conversations about the experience of being a non-White person on a college campus.

A large number - in fact, virtually all of the public institutions of higher education and a sizable number of private - prohibited non-White or female students from attending at some point in their histories. Most were founded by White men and led by White men for many years. So historically and culturally, these institutions tend to have few opportunities for people of color and women. Many are working to change that now. Additionally, many institutions are concerned about recruitment and retention of non-White students, which tends to be lower, and rarely down to “the students aren’t smart enough/qualified.” There are considerable social and psychological factors that non-White students confront in an environment that can be at best exclusionary and unwelcoming and at worst isolating and racist. The experience can be quite similar across racial groups - Asian American students report similar instances of being called by racial epithets and stereotyped, similar to what Latino students report (epithets and stereotypes are different, but they still happen). So support services are often coordinated. Hence the use for a term to easily ID the non-White students.

I should also note that the term people of color has a mildly panethnic appeal and is somewhat political, because it suggests that non-White people have a common experience. But as I said earlier, I feel it’s not terribly strong in that respect.

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[QUOTE=Captain Amazing]
I believe in this case, he’s talking about the Gates Millenium Scholarship, the website of which can be found here: https://www.gmsp.org/

It is restricted to low income minority students. In fairness to the Gates’s, the Gates Foundation offers other scholarship programs that aren’t restricted by race.
[/QUOTE]
His explicit claim was

Of the four separate college scholarship programs, plus the primary school program and three high school funding and support programs, (most of which are umbrella organizations to fund multiple other support programs), exactly one is targeted directly to minorities.
This is not hidden information and his statement, as posted, is a lie.

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[QUOTE=Captain Amazing]
The problem with it, though, is that it does lump together "“blacks, african-americans, asians, asian-americans, pacific islander, hispanic, latino…”, as you said, as a single group, when in fact, you’re dealing with a diverse group of people with diverse interests and needs.

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Sure, but we do it all the time. I’m always lumping together individuals and calling them “students,” after all. Despite the fact that they have different majors, ages, priorities, backgrounds, residency status, etc.

I understand the concern about being blind to individual differences and group differences in terms of needs, interests, and the like. However, in my experience the resources devoted to the broad “student of color” label are very sensitive to those. Lack of appreciation for differences is not a charge I’ve often heard leveled at those most concerned with minority students or underrepresented students or students of color or whatever other handy collective label you place on them.

I see it as a matter of saving your tongue some work, or trying to fit something on a sign or letterhead. That doesn’t mean you turn off your brain and refuse to see the differences.

Thank you, Hippy Hollow, for a good rundown.

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[QUOTE=GuyNblueJeans]
STOMPED INTO THE ASPHALT BY THOSE MOTHERFUCKING GODDAMN RACIST NIGGERS!! WHY DID’NT TED KOPPEL TELL THE WORLD ABOUT IT?!! HE SURE MADE DAMN SURE EVERYONE HEARD ABOUT JAMES BYRD!!)!
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I’m so relieved that the caveat against swearing has been officially lifted by the OP.

Why all the Ted Koppel hate? The toupe is punishment enough for him, GuyNBlueJeans, without all your bile.

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[QUOTE=Rubystreak]
Why all the Ted Koppel hate?
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Actually, we haven’t figured out whether he hates Ted Koppel or loves him. He made at least two posts where he went completely off the wall. Not much can be figured out from his posts; it’s not entirely clear what he raving about.

[QUOTE=GuyNblueJeans]
I thought for sure that the brilliant, smooth talking Ted Koppel would get wind of her racism and invite the phony pig on his Nightline show and ask her where she gets off making a statement like that. But of course, I didn’t really think he would …
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But we have deturmined one thing for certain..yeah…

[QUOTE=GuyNblueJeans]
WHY DID’NT TED KOPPEL TELL THE WORLD ABOUT IT?!!
[/QUOTE]

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[QUOTE=tomndebb]
Of the four separate college scholarship programs, plus the primary school program and three high school funding and support programs, (most of which are umbrella organizations to fund multiple other support programs), exactly one is targeted directly to minorities.
This is not hidden information and his statement, as posted, is a lie.
[/QUOTE]

It’s certainly a false statement. The grant for the Millenium Scholarship was only 1 billion, not 3 billion, and there are other education scholarships offered not targeted directly to minorities. But I don’t know if I’d call it a lie so much as a mistake. If he had asked the rhetorical question,

“Why do you suppose it is that Bill and Melissa Gates exclude Caucasians from partaking in their $1-billion give-away to help disadvantaged youth make it through college?”

that would have been factually correct (although omitting important facts, and designed to make it appear more sinister than it is). It’s quite possible that he saw information about the one scholarship and then just increased its size, either deliberately or accidentally.

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After discussion with the rest of the moderating staff (and Ted Koppel, of course), we have decided to suspend GuyNblueJeans for 30 days.

I’ll go ahead and close this thread on my way out.