Homelands and Indigenous Identities in a Multiracial Era |
Homelands and Indigenous Identities in a Multiracial Era
Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association Annual Meeting
Sheraton Boston and the Boston Marriott Copley Place
Boston, Massachusetts
2008-07-31
27 pages
Carolyn A. Liebler, Assistant Professor of Sociology
University of Minnesota
Although multiple-race responses are now allowed on federal forms like the census, most interracially married single-race parents report their children as single race. I argue that homelands – physical places with cultural meaning – are an important component of the intergenerational transfer of a single-race identity in multiracial families. I make my case by focusing on families with an interracially married American Indian who was living with his or her spouse and child in 2000 (Census 2000 5% PUMS [Public Use Microdata Series]). Logistic regression reveals that there is a strong effect of living in an American Indian homeland on the child’s chances of being reported as single-race American Indian. This effect remains even after accounting for family connections to American Indians and other groups, family and area poverty levels, geographic isolation, and the racial composition of the area. The intergenerational transmission of strong indigenous identities can continue in this multiracial era (as it has for centuries) in the context of culturally meaningful physical places.
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Tags: Carolyn A. Liebler, Carolyn Liebler, IPUMS, PUMS