The philosopher Jorge J. E. Gracia engages fifteen prominent scholars on race, ethnicity, nationality, and Hispanic/Latino identity in the United States. Their discussion joins two distinct traditions: the philosophy of race begun by African Americans in the nineteenth century, and the search for an understanding of identity initiated by Latin American philosophers in the sixteenth century. Participants include Linda M. Alcoff, K. Anthony Appiah, Richard J. Bernstein, Lawrence Blum, Robert Gooding-Williams, Eduardo Mendieta, and Lucius T. Outlaw Jr., and their dialogue reflects the analytic,

The philosopher Jorge J. E. Gracia engages fifteen prominent scholars on race, ethnicity, nationality, and Hispanic/Latino identity in the United States. Their discussion joins two distinct traditions: the philosophy of race begun by African Americans in the nineteenth century, and the search for an understanding of identity initiated by Latin American philosophers in the sixteenth century. Participants include Linda M. Alcoff, K. Anthony Appiah, Richard J. Bernstein, Lawrence Blum, Robert Gooding-Williams, Eduardo Mendieta, and Lucius T. Outlaw Jr., and their dialogue reflects the analytic, Aristotelian, Continental, literary, Marxist, and pragmatic schools of thought. These intellectuals start with the philosophy of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States and then move to the philosophy of African Americans and Anglo Americans in the United States and the philosophy of Latin Americans in Latin America. Gracia and his interlocutors debate the nature of race and ethnicity and their relation to nationality, linguistic rights, matters of identity, and Affirmative Action, binding the concepts of race and ethnicity together in ways that open new paths of inquiry. Gracia's Familial-Historical View of ethnic and Hispanic/Latino identity operates at the center of each of these discussions, providing vivid access to the philosopher's provocative arguments while adding unique depth to issues that each of us struggles to understand.

This edited collection brings together original research papers that explore an important aspect of race and ethnic studies, namely the processes that are shaping the making of Latina and Latino identities in contemporary America. This is a question that has received much attention in the USA over the past decade, and these papers make an original contribution to these debates. Much of this attention towards Latino/a communities in the USA can be seen as the outcome of public debates about the growth of these communities over the past three decades, and the consequences of this growth for social and political change. The papers in this collection highlight some of the key facets of contemporary research in this field. As original pieces of research they are at the forefront of current debates about Latino/a identities in contemporary America, and they provide research based insights into the changing experiences of these communities. This book was originally published as a special issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies.

"What is race? What is ethnicity? Should we think of them as identities? Can they be effectively individuated? How are they related? How do the relations between them influence pressing issues concerned with social identity, gender, racism, assimilation, exploitation, justice, the law, and public policy? And how are the answers to these questions affected by the Black and Latino experience in the United States"—From the Preface This collection of new essays explores the relation between race and ethnicity and its social and political implications. Although much work has been done on the philosophy of race in the past century in the United States, the concept of ethnicity has only recently awoken the interest of American philosophers, and the relations between race and ethnicity remain largely unexamined. The discussion is divided into two parts dealing, on the one hand, with the nature and the relation between race and ethnicity and, on the other, with the social consequences of the complex relations between them. Part I explores in particular the debated topic of racial and ethnic identities: Does it make sense to speak of racial and ethnic identities, and especially of black and Latino identities? And if it does make sense, how should these identities be conceptualized, and how are they related to gender? Part II examines how race and ethnicity have influenced the lot of some social groups in significant ways: How do racially defined institutions deal with racial assimilation? How do different conceptions of race and ethnicity influence public policy and various forms of racism? How can exploited racial and ethnic groups be effectively recognized? And what is the role of affect in social justice as dispensed by the courts?

The presence and impact of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States cannot be ignored. Already the largest minority group, by 2050 their numbers will exceed all the other minority groups in the United States combined. The diversity of this population is often understated, but the people differ in terms of their origin, race. language, custom, religion, political affiliation, education and economic status. The heterogeneity of the Hispanic/Latino population raises questions about their identity and their rights: do they really constitute a group? That is, do they have rights as a group, or just as individuals? This volume, addresses these concerns through a varied and interdisciplinary approach.

This volume provides a superb introduction to the philosophical, social, and political elements of Hispanic/Latino identity. It is an indispensable tool for anyone interested in issues that concern Hispanics/Latinos, social policy, and the history of thought and culture.

A first-of-its-kind book that seriously and profoundly examines what it means philosophically to be Latino and where Latinos fit in American society. Offers a fresh perspective and clearer understanding of Latin American thought and culture, rejecting answers based on stereotypes and fear Takes an interdisciplinary approach to the philosophical, social, and political elements of Hispanic/Latino identity, touching upon anthropology, history, cultural studies and sociology, as well as philosophy Written by Jorge J. E. Gracia, one of the most influential thinkers of Hispanic/Latino descent

This volume provides a superb introduction to the philosophical, social, and political elements of Hispanic/Latino identity. It is an indispensable tool for anyone interested in issues that concern Hispanics/Latinos, social policy, and the history of thought and culture.

Due to the dramatic growth of the Latino population in America, in combination with the relative decline of the Anglo (non-Hispanic white) share, Latino Studies is increasingly at the forefront of political concern. With Latino Politics: Identity, Mobilization, and Representation, editors Rodolfo Espino, David L. Leal, and Kenneth J. Meier bring together essays from a number of leading scholars to address the ever-more important issues within the field. Providing an overview of issues surrounding Latino identity and political opinion--such as differences among Latino groups based on national origin, the importance of descriptive representation, and issues of competition and cooperation, particularly with reference to African Americans--the editors speak to the many fundamental debates ingrained in the discipline. In addition to highlighting important contributions of the study of Latino politics to date, this volume suggests areas that have yet to be explored and, perhaps more importantly, demonstrates how the study of Latino politics relates to broader questions of American politics and society. Foregrounding debates in the overall discipline of political science, the collection will appeal to those who study Latino politics as well as those who are interested in understanding American politics and society with reference to Latino and "minority" concerns. Contributors Rodney E. Hero, University of Notre Dame * Benjamin Márquez, University of Wisconsin, Madison * David L. Leal, University of Texas at Austin * Michael Jones-Correa, Cornell University * Matt A. Barreto, University of Washington * Ricardo Ramírez, University of Southern California * Louis DeSipio, University of California, Irvine * Adrian D. Pantoja, Arizona State University * Sylvia Manzano, Texas A&M University * Helena Alves Rodrigues, University of Arizona * Gary M. Segura, University of Washington * René R. Rocha, University of Iowa * Luis Ricardo Fraga, University of Washington * Sharon A. Navarro, University of Texas at San Antonio * Rodolfo Espino, Arizona State University * Jason P. Casellas, University of Texas at Austin * Eric Gonzalez Juenke, University of Colorado at Boulder * Nick A. Theobald, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo * Valerie Martinez-Ebers, Texas Christian University * Manuel Avalos, Arizona State University * Kenneth J. Meier, Texas A&M University

AbstractPolitical controversies over multicultural education, affirmative action, reparations, and racism concerning Latinos give rise to quandaries about Latino identity. Is it a racial identity, an ethnic identity, both, or neither? This study argues for a notion of Latino ethnic identity centered on a person's embodiment of Latino cultural traits (e.g., speaking Spanish, dancing salsa, etc.) and for its political significance in three ways: as an effective method of reducing ethnocentrism in the classroom, as a way of developing ethnically conscious public policies, and as a way to offer a promising way of reducing oppression in the United States. This thesis is developed by assessing four approaches to Latino identity: the nominalist proposed by Kwame Anthony Appiah, the familial-historical defended by Jorge J.E. Gracia, the public policy presented by J. Angelo Corlett, and the ethnoracial proposed by Linda Martín Alcoff. Each approach is limited in different ways.^The nominalist view does not clearly distinguish racial from ethnic grounds; the familial-historical view offers no clear way of determining what kind of features are ethnically relevant; the public policy view makes ethnic change impossible; and the ethnoracial view downplays the ethnic component in Latino identity. All four approaches neglect an essential element in Latino identity, namely, culture. I defend the view that if one is interested in reducing ethnocentrism in the U.S. and providing a basis for Latino ethnic identity, then we should think that a person has such an identity if, and only if: (1) the person identifies with any of the many lower-level, Latino cultural traits (e.g., speaking Spanish, dancing salsa, etc.) that emerge from Latino history.^The political significance of the cultural view is developed by situating it in the context of four political debates: the kind of history public schools should teach Latino children, affirmative action, reparations for Latinos, and the "Latino" versus "Hispanic" debate. The first chapter discusses Appiah's defense of the educational policy that public schools should teach American-history-first to all American children. Drawing on Walter Mignolo's decolonial approach to history, I argue that Appiah's recommendation is not as multicultural as it seems because it turns marginalized groups into objects, rather than subjects, in history. If ethnocentrism is to be reduced in classrooms, then public schools should teach Latino-history-first to Latino children. The second chapter assesses Gracia's political claim that affirmative action is justified for Latinos as a matter of justice or utility.^Drawing on Charles Mills's concept of non-ideal theory, I argue that Gracia's view about the proper aims of affirmative action do not offer an effective means of eliminating what critical race and feminist theorists call "white ignorance," which is a type of ignorance about people of color. If affirmative action aims to reduce the production and reproduction of white ignorance, then a person's possession of Latino cultural properties should determine ethnic relevance. The third chapter evaluates some of the arguments against reparations in general and draws on Rodolfo Acuña's account of Chicano history to show that reparations for some Mexicans are justified as a matter of justice. The fourth chapter critically evaluates why "Latino" is the most apt label for the population under discussion and why political considerations should be relevant when determining the choice of a name. In the final chapter a cultural view of Latino ethnic identity is proposed.^Criticisms against a cultural approach are presented and then rejoinders are offered. I argue that a non-ethnocentric cultural view of Latino ethnic identity accounts for hybrid ethnic features, and does not naturalize, universalize, or racialize Latino traits.