Rinku Sen

Are Immigrants and Refugees People of Color?

As the immigrant rights movement prepares for the next round of the fight for legalization and humane immigration regulation, it should take this opportunity to examine the decisions of immigrants to identify (or not) with U.S.-born Blacks, Latinos, Asians and American Indians. In Are Immigrants and Refugees People of Color, published in the July issue of ColorLines, I reflect on the resistance I have encountered from immigrants to discuss the role race plays in the lives of their communities. All identities are a little bit forced. Some labels are imposed on us by oppressive social structures. Others we pick up to define ourselves in opposition. I wrote this piece because colleagues and activists asked me about the origins of the “people of color” identity, what it was for and whether it still seems useful. The questions led me to think hard about the role of identity in political action, and how the two change each other. While I was reporting it, I was surprised at the large number of intense reactions the term seems to generate. I argue that all identities beyond “human” feel like a bit of a stretch – the fact that immigrants and refugees have to become people of color is no surprise. It’s an identity that heavily shaped my politics, and that, I argue, should shape those of the immigrant rights’ movement today. I’ll be taking all comments and new questions as fodder for future writing, so send them in.

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Posted at 10:38 AM, Jul 17, 2007 in Civil Rights | Immigration | Racial Justice
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