The racial construction of Puerto Rico

I've read different stuff and I think most are a triracial mixed to varying degrees and for w/e reason(s) most will self-identify/report themselves as white or European....I think it's racially as diverse as Brazil but people have their reasons for what they Identify of report themselves as. Good post.

What's more dangerous than sincere ignorance?

I have to ask you then Boricanator, why do you think out of all the Spanish colonies seized by America and depicted as black by the link elmastero1 gave us only Ricans are depicted as black by the media as you claim. What about Samoans, Filipinos, and Hawaiians? (Even though Hawaii was not a Spanish colony)

Scooby Doo can doo doo, but Jimmy Carter is smarter.

I saw the movie it was okay; different though. The social commentary on the race or culture issue is interesting. For the record I am African-American. I am a student of history, and being a decedent of African Slaves, I had to know my history. I respect elmasterol's emphasis that culture should be the focus. Elmasterol’s is right, the focus on race is, an exploration in racism. Some of the other commentators seem to exhibit manifest racial tension, with the idea of African ancestry. But I am sure they would say they are not racist. But then again how long does it take an alcoholic to realize that he is an alcoholic or someone who smokes pot to know that he is a hooked. I have read your analysis of the DNA methodology and I have read it elsewhere in historic texts regarding racial identities in various countries. However, I must admit that even as a lawyer, I didn't understand it the way you broke it down. Nonetheless, I questioned its findings, because it doesn't mesh with history. First, I mean no disrespect to those of you how identify as being Hispanic, but the inescapable fact remains that prior to the Slave Trade, there was no such thing as a Hispanic person, because the European was on the other side of the Earth and all that existed in the Caribbean were the natives. Although by that time Span had long been conquered by the Moors of Africa and reflected that, i.e. darker complexions than the rest of the Europeans. North and South America as well as the Caribbean were inhabited by Native Americans. In fact, estimates put it that prior to the commencement of any sort of slavery, there were little more than 400,000 Native American tribes in the Caribbean. Under the conditions of slavery and the contracting of diseases from the Europeans, the natives died quickly, which necessitated the impetus of the African Slave Trade became in demand. Using basic logic, Christopher Columbus and his cohorts intended to enslave the Native American, i.e. the Taino Indians, but that turned out to be a bad idea, because they died off too rapidly to use them as sustained labor. And I am quite sure that those that remained fled into the more rural and harder to reach terrain for freedom. Thus, the primary persons in the Caribbean, North American, and substantial portions of South American was the minority European enslavers (Spanish, French, Portuguese and British) seeking to make a profit for the kingdom and in the mean time, to get a little of that African stuff for pleasure. Moreover, contrary to popular opinion the African Slave trade was huge not only in the Caribbean, but also in South and eventually North America. The Difference is that a few countries in South America, which is much larger than the Caribbean, were able to maintain much more of their native culture. But many South American Countries were substantially affected by the African Slave Trade, i.e. Brazil.
In essence, trying to estimate how many persons on the island of Puerto Rico are of African descent, is likely to be influenced by your perception as to who you view black and white. As my Cuban colleague, who says that he is of mixed decent (which he looks), states that Hispanic are taught to shun their ancestral blackness as a matter of culture. As my Cuban colleague enlightened me, Hispanics are taught to "whiten up the race." So often times the great emphasis placed upon proving how much blackness is on the particular Spanish island is often signs of a much deeper personal issue whereby many Spanish people have disdain for their black ancestors. This is not a personal attack on my part. The U.S. Government has researched this issue to a great extent and if you go to www.countrystudies.us (the source of which is the U.S. Library of Congress), there you will find studies on many countries, including Hispanic countries in the government’s study of the Dominican Republic it writes, “Dominicans traditionally preferred to think of themselves as descendants of the island's Indians and the Spanish, ignoring their African heritage. Thus, phenotypical African characteristics were disparaged. Emigrants to the United States brought a new level of racial consciousness to the republic, however, when they returned. Those who came back during the 1960s and the 1970s had experienced both racial prejudice and the black pride movement in North America. Returning migrants brought back Afro hairstyles and a variety of other Afro-North Americanisms.” So, any focus on whether the character in this move is black, without any reference to culture, is probably more in the likeness of some racial tension within one’s self, because elmasterol's is right focus on race is obscure, ambiguous and probably about something other than what is being stated.

I understand. I just always find it very sad to hear things like that. My mother is Afro-cuban so I know the internal forms of racism in Cuba. It's disheartening.

Yea, I never understood the whole "acting black" term. This whole ghetto things always throws me for a loop. As if the only people in the hood are black. I know black people say it too, but, I guess that's why a lot of people think "hood" culture means black culture. The same goes for "acting white". Never understood that one either. But this one is more amusing to me because as I understand it "acting white" entails speaking proper English when you speak or type among other things. It's funny how having a grasp of the English language means you're "acting white" and being from the "hood" means you're "acting black". Very interesting.

The example of Fat Joe is perfect. That was my original point. Hispanic people that don't consider themselves to be black, but somehow think it's ok to throw the word ni@@a around. That's exactly why I said hispanic people don't want to be black until it comes to hip-hop and the n word. Then all the sudden, they're down. I don't care for Fat Joe, so whatever. But I can say Lloyd Banks can be excused from that since he is black.

"They say I talk with so much emphasis. Oooooo they so sensitive."