Race and Ethnicity and the Controversy Over the US Census

Abstract

The article examines the relationship between the history of the census undercount and classification of race and ethnicity in the United States Census. The US decennial census was created to apportion seats in the House of Representatives among the states. The race classification derives from the provisions of the 1787 federal Constitution, which required that the census differentiate slave and free persons and exclude Indians not taxed for the purposes of Congressional apportionment. The current race and classification used by federal agencies is promulgated by the Office of Management and Budget as `Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Data on Race and Ethnicity'. The article traces the history of the categories, the development of methods for measuring census accuracy, particularly for measuring undercount, and the conceptualization of the differential undercount as a minority undercount. Finally it discusses potential implications of the recent changes in the classification to permit identification with more than one race category on the measurement of census accuracy.