Social Statistics and Ethnic Diversity / IMISCOE Research Series (PDF)

“Why do states collect (or not collect) ethnic and racial data, and what are the social and political implications of the ethnic and racial classifications which are used? At a time when debates about the salience of ethnic and racial assertions and identities are central to the workings of many multiethnic societies, this illuminating and ambitious volume breaks new ground through a global and comprehensive exploration of these questions.”

Miri Song, University of Kent

 

“Should nations count by race and ethnicity? This impressive collection instructs us that massive population movements require many nations to govern their increasingly diverse racial and ethnic populations, confronting unprecedented social tensions and struggling to guarantee new forms of social justice.   Here we learn that there are cross-national commonalities, and lessons to learn about whether, why and how to classify and count.”

Kenneth Prewitt, Columbia University and author of What is Your Race: The Census and Our Flawed Effort to Classify Americans.

 

“There is considerable variation across the world in the extent to which different nations gather official statistics that classify people by ethnicity and origins, and in the kinds of questions they ask and the categories they use.  This book combines an overview of patterns of classification across the world, along with case studies of specific countries.  It is a fascinating look at how the statistics on ethnicity are created, shaped and used in different national contexts.  It should be required reading for those who study race and ethnicity, as well as anyone who uses ethnic statistics.” 

Mary C. Waters, Harvard University