Just like what should have happened on the Census, MENA (Middle East & North Africa) should be a separate category from "White". Somalis should definitely NOT be in the "White" category lol - by any metric.
Both socially & culturally, people from the Middle East & North Africa are not viewed as being "White" (unless they are "white-passing"). Also, there are "white-passing" people from non-MENA backgrounds.
Osama bin Laden was definitely not viewed as being a "white guy" but according to this classification and the US census he would be. At the end of the day, race is arbitrary and NOT scientific. However, the concept of race has become an indelible part of society - especially in the United States.
Tbh it’s hard to draw a line between “white passing” MENA and “non white passing” MENA. I honestly think most MENA people look similar enough to Europeans (particularly Italians and Jews) and White Latinos to physically pass as white. They aren’t considered white due to cultural differences.
Also, there are many MENA people who are considered to be "Black" - at least by Western standards . For example, the Dutch model Imaan Hammam is of Egyptian & Moroccan ancestry but she would be considered to be a Black woman in the Western world and by most people walking past her on the street. She also considers herself to be a Black woman.
Furthermore, "A 2015 Census Bureau study found that, when given a survey with a “Middle Eastern and North African” (MENA) option, individuals from those regions who identified as white dropped from 85.5 percent to 20 percent. The study also concluded that including the MENA category in the census would be “optimal” and would improve the accuracy of the national head count for the community."
I think people like Mark Esper or Justin Amash look white. Or Darrel Issa
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