--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Checking a box on a form for…" description: "\"“Checking a box on a form for race—\"Caucasian,\" \"Hispanic,\" \"African-American,\" \"Native American,\" or \"Asian-American\"—is untenable and ridiculous. For..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c4/michael-shermer-2567_americans_checking-a-box-on-a-form-for-race-caucas_758514.jpg" --- # Checking a box on a form for race—"Caucasian," "Hispanic,"… ![“Checking a box on a form for race—"Caucasian," "Hispanic," "African-American," "Native American," or "Asian-American"—is untenable and ridiculous. For one thing, "American" is not a race, so labels such as "Asian-American" and "African-American" are still exhibits of our confusion of culture and…” quote by Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c4/michael-shermer-2567_americans_checking-a-box-on-a-form-for-race-caucas_758514.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c4/michael-shermer-2567_americans_checking-a-box-on-a-form-for-race-caucas_758514.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c4/michael-shermer-2567_americans_checking-a-box-on-a-form-for-race-caucas_758514.jpg) > ““Checking a box on a form for race—"Caucasian," "Hispanic," "African-American," "Native American," or "Asian-American"—is untenable and ridiculous. For one thing, "American" is not a race, so labels such as "Asian-American" and "African-American" are still exhibits of our confusion of culture and race. For another thing, how far back does one go in history? Native Americans are really Asians, if you go back more than twenty or thirty thousand years to before they crossed the Bering land bridge between Asia and America. And Asians, several hundred thousand years ago probably came out of Africa, so we should really replace "Native American" with "African-Asian-Native American." Finally, if the Out of Africa (single racial origin) theory holds true, then all modern humans are from Africa. (Cavalli-Sforza now thinks this may have been as recently as seventy thousand years ago.) Even if that theory gives way to the Candelabra (multiple racial origins) theory, ultimately all hominids came from Africa, and therefore everyone in America should simply check the box next to "African-American.”” [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Racial categories are socially constructed and often inaccurate, leading to confusion and oversimplification. **In simple terms:** Race labels are messy and misleading. Key Takeaway Question and simplify identity categories. Themes identity race social constructs politics Mood critical thoughtful Type analytical controversial When to use this quote - census design - policy making - education - public discourse Key Concepts anthropology history biology Questions to Reflect On - What are the consequences of reducing identity to one category? - How can we respect complexity while collecting data? A Different Perspective Simplifying to a single label erases cultural diversity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [African american](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/african-american/) [American Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-race-2387691/) [Americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americans/) [Descent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/descent/) [Human history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-history/) [Native americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/native-americans/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Race Caucasian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race-caucasian-5886237/) [Races](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/races/) [Racial Origin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racial-origin-5886235/) [Racial Origins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racial-origins-5886236/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/) ## Related quotes > [The great drama at the core of American race relations is always the same: Can black Americans ever be truly equal - are they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/the-great-drama-at-the-core-of-american-race-relations-is-always-the/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [I think there's a lot of shame in American race relations. 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For one thing, \"American\" is not a race, so labels such as \"Asian-American\" and \"African-American\" are still exhibits of our confusion of culture and race. For another thing, how far back does one go in history? Native Americans are really Asians, if you go back more than twenty or thirty thousand years to before they crossed the Bering land bridge between Asia and America. And Asians, several hundred thousand years ago probably came out of Africa, so we should really replace \"Native American\" with \"African-Asian-Native American.\" Finally, if the Out of Africa (single racial origin) theory holds true, then all modern humans are from Africa. (Cavalli-Sforza now thinks this may have been as recently as seventy thousand years ago.) 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