Edward E. Telles

Does it matter who answers the race question? Racial classification and income inequality in Brazil

Previous studies ofracial inequality have relied on official statistics that presumably use self-classification of race. Using novel data from a 1995 national survey in Brazil, we find that the estimates of racial income inequality based on self-classification are lower than those based on interviewer classification. After human capital and labor market controls, whites earn 26% more than browns with interviewer classification but earn only 17% more than browns with self-classification. Black-brown differences hardly change: Blacks earn 13% and 12% less than browns with interviewer classification and self-classification, respectively. We contend that interviewer classification of race is more appropriate because analysts of racial inequality are interested in the effects of racial discrimination, which depends on how others classify ones race.

Residential Segregation by Skin Color in Brazil

I examine residential segregation by skin color in 35 of the largest metropolitan areas in Brazil, using census tract data from the 1980 Brazilian census. Residential dissimilarity among whites, mulattoes (browns) and blacks is only moderate by U.S. standards. White-black dissimilarity is the highest, followed by brown-black and then white-brown dissimilarity. Residential segregation within income groups is lowest for the low income groups and increases with increasing income level. For most of the white middle class, residential separation is ensured by the concentration of blacks and mulattoes in low socioeconomic classes and in distinct regions. Multivariate analysis reveals that an urban areas socioeconomic status and housing market are strong predictors of overall residential segregation : segregation is significantly higher in urban areas with high occupational inequality, low mean income, high levels of housing turnover, and high homeownership. Measures of industrialization, immigrant influence and color heterogeneity were not significant. Implications for Brazilian race relations are discussed

Racial politics in contemporary Brazil

CONTENTS Introduction Michael Hanchard Free African Brazilians and the State of Slavery Times Richard Graham Black Cinderella? Race and the Public Sphere in Brazil Michael Hanchard Ethnic Boundaries and Political Mobilization among African Brazilians: Comparisons with the U.S. Case Edward E. Telles Racial Democracy and Racial Identity: Comparing the United States and Brazil Howard Winant Miguel Reale and the Impact of Conservative Modernization on Brazilian Race Relations Micbael Mitchell Women and Racial Inequality at Work in Brazil Peggy A. Lovell Notes on Racial and Policied Inequality In Brazil Carlos Hasenbalg and Nelson do Valle Silva The Black Movement and Political Parties: A Challenging Alliance Benedita da Silva My Conscience, My Struggle Thereza Santos Blacks and Political Power Ivanir dos Santos Contributors: Index

Structural Sources of Socioeconomic Segregation in Brazilian Metropolitan Areas

This article evaluates the impact of industrialization and urbanization on residential segregation by income among Brazilian metropolitan areas. Using data from the 1980 census of Brazil, the author finds that more-industrialized areas have lower segregation because they have lower income inequality. However, urbanization, particularly population size, explains most of the variation in segregation among metropolitan areas. The conclusion is that the extent of urbanization, which is dependent of industrialization, is key to understanding socioeconomic spatial inequalities in the large and rapidly growing cities of less-developed countries, but that conclusions regarding the effects of industrialization throught industrial location or investment in real estate have been overgeneralized.

Racial Identity and Racial Treatment of Mexican Americans

How racial barriers play in the experiences of Mexican Americans has been hotly debated. Some consider Mexican Americans similar to European Americans of a century ago that arrived in the United States with modest backgrounds but were eventually able to participate fully in society. In contrast, others argue that Mexican Americans have been racialized throughout U.S. history, and this limits their participation in society. The evidence of persistent educational disadvantages across generations and frequent reports of discrimination and stereotyping supports the racialization argument. In this paper, we explore the ways in which race plays a role in the lives of Mexican Americans by examining how education, racial characteristics, social interactions, relate to racial outcomes. We use the Mexican American Study Project, a unique data set based on a 1965 survey of Mexican Americans in Los Angeles and San Antonio combined with surveys of the same respondents and their adult children in 2000, thereby creating a longitudinal and intergenerational data set. First, we found that darker Mexican Americans, therefore appearing more stereotypically Mexican, report more experiences of discrimination. Second, darker men report much more discrimination than lighter men and than women overall. Third, more educated Mexican Americans experience more stereotyping and discrimination than their less educated counterparts, which is partly due to their greater contact with whites. Lastly, having greater contact with whites leads to experiencing more stereotyping and discrimination. Our results are indicative of the ways in which Mexican Americans are racialized in the United States.

Assimilation and gender in naming

This article examines the naming practices of Hispanic parents who gave birth to children in Los Angeles County in 1995. The authors find that greater exposure to U.S. culture increases the chances of naming a child in English. However, they find that by giving children English names that are translatable into Spanish, U.S.‐born Hispanic parents are able simultaneously to assimilate while maintaining a connection to their ethnic origins. In addition, the authors find that attitudes favoring assimilation are particularly great when naming daughters. Immigrant Hispanic couples tend to give sons Spanish names, but they often give daughters English names without Spanish referents. These gender differences persist even among U.S.‐born Hispanics paired with non‐Hispanics. Among intermarried couples, father’s ethnicity has a disproportionately large influence in naming, especially for sons’ names. These findings have implications for how the assimilation process is gendered.

Industrialization and racial inequality in employment: the Brazilian example

Levels of industrialization and other related factors such as educational level have influenced patterns of racial inequality in occupations in 74 large metropolitan areas in Brazil. Data were obtained from the 1980 census and special tabulations of the census for large cities. Blacks and Browns were grouped into a single non-White racial category. Lieberson and Fossets were the source of a scale used to measure occupational inequality. the highest to the lowest ranking of occupation included managerial/professional occupations intermediate occupations and unskilled blue-collar occupations. Net differences and odds ratios were both used as measures of inequality. The extent of industrialization was measured by the percentage of the total labor force employment in manufacturing industries. Four models were constructed to explain the relationships. The findings showed that Whites were four times more likely than Non-Whites to hold jobs in the highest occupational group. Non-Whites were two times as likely to hold jobs in unskilled blue-collar occupations. 33.5% of Whites and 21.3% of Non-Whites held intermediate occupational positions. Browns tended to have better jobs than Blacks but the largest differences were between Whites and non-Whites. Whites were 25.6% more likely to be in higher occupational groups than non-Whites. The odds of being in managerial/professional jobs were 5.3 times greater for Whites. The odds of holding White collar jobs were 2.9 times greater for Whites. The odds of being in skilled blue collar jobs were 1.6 times greater for Whites. In the South where Whites were a majority the net difference scores indicated greater inequalities. In majority non-White areas the differences were narrower. The average non-White population was 21.5% in majority White areas and 67.0% in majority non-White areas. The odds of Whites completing 12 or more years of schooling was 7.0 times greater in the White South compared to 3.9 times greater in the non-White North. When educational differences were controlled industrialization had a negative effect on inequality and increased inequalities through education.

Multiracial versus Collective Black Categories Examining Census Classification Debates in Brazil

Current census debates in Brazil surrounding Brazilian race categories center on two contrasting proposals: the adoption of the multiracial moreno term vs. the use of the collective black classification negro. Those proposing the former base their argument on the right to self-classify according to one’s own sense of identity. Proponents of the negro category contend that it would be most efficient for redressing racial discrimination. We examine the meaning and saliency of these categories and explore the possible consequences of their adoption. Using national survey data, we demonstrate how education, age, color, sex and local racial composition structure the choices of moreno and negro over official census terms. Findings include a negative correlation between education and the choice of moreno, while the opposite is true for negro. In addition, an age effect on both categories suggests a popular shift in racial labeling away from official census terms. We note that similar issues structure current census debates in the USA.

The color of health: skin color, ethnoracial classification, and discrimination in the health of Latin Americans.

Latin America is one of the most ethnoracially heterogeneous regions of the world. Despite this, health disparities research in Latin America tends to focus on gender, class and regional health differences while downplaying ethnoracial differences. Few scholars have conducted studies of ethnoracial identification and health disparities in Latin America. Research that examines multiple measures of ethnoracial identification is rarer still. Official data on race/ethnicity in Latin America are based on self-identification which can differ from interviewer-ascribed or phenotypic classification based on skin color. We use data from Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru to examine associations of interviewer-ascribed skin color, interviewer-ascribed race/ethnicity, and self-reported race/ethnicity with self-rated health among Latin American adults (ages 18-65). We also examine associations of observer-ascribed skin color with three additional correlates of health - skin color discrimination, class discrimination, and socio-economic status. We find a significant gradient in self-rated health by skin color. Those with darker skin colors report poorer health. Darker skin color influences self-rated health primarily by increasing exposure to class discrimination and low socio-economic status.

Understanding Latin American Beliefs about Racial Inequality1

Scholars argue that Latin American ideologies of mestizaje, or racial mixing, mask ethnoracial discrimination. We examine popular explanations for indigenous or Afrodescendant disadvantage in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru using the 2010 AmericasBarometer survey. Findings show that numerical majorities across all countries endorse structural-disadvantage explanations and reject victim-blaming stances; in seven of eight countries, they specifically recognize discrimination against ethnoracial minorities. Brazilians most point to structural causes, while Bolivians are least likely to recognize discrimination. While educational status differences tend to be sizable, dominant and minority explanations are similar. Both are comparable to African-American views and contrast with those of U.S. whites.