Why Many Arab Americans Check ‘White’ On The US Census

Noor Tagouri: This might surprise you, but according to the US Government, I’m considered white.

That’s because on the US census there’s no option for Middle Eastern or North African, also known as MENA Americans. That means that while we don’t always have the same resources as some minority groups, we still face a lot of the same struggles.

I like to think of it as white without the privilege.

Initially, in 1944, MENA Americans were overjoyed when the government ruled to legally identify them as white. That’s probably because up until 1952 only white Americans were able to become US citizens.

So here we are all these years later, and folks from the Middle East and North Africa still don’t have their own American identity.

But that could change in the next Census. Which might mean for the first time we’ll actually know how many MENA Americans there are.

Right now, estimates range from 1.5 million to 3.6 million, and some experts even think closer to 6 million people.

What most people don’t realize is that a majority of the MENA population in the US are actually Christian and many of them want to continue identifying as white. That makes adding a MENA bubble on the Census kind of controversial.

Some people are also worried that the clarity of the demographic data will make it easier for law enforcement and Homeland Security target certain neighborhoods or communities.

There’s a good chance that MENA Americans will no longer have to classify as white after 2020, but we won’t know until 2018, when Congress votes on the final Census.

So, do you think the Census represents you? Let us know.

For Newsy, I’m Noor Tagouri.